Romanesque Parish Church of Saints Faustino and Giovita
Address and contacts
Via S. Faustino - 42048 Rubiera
Phones
0039 0522 620705 - Parish church of S. Faustino
0039 0522 626865 - Parish church of Fontana
Parrocchia San Faustino
Opening times
Visitable upon arrangement
How to get there
Rubiera
By car
distance from the Reggio Emilia exit of A1 motorway: 12 km - National Road 9, Via Emilia - from the centre of Rubiera, take Via Emilia and then turn left into Via F.lli Cervi following the signs to Correggio, then left in Via S. Faustino.
By bus
At the end of the bus n° 2 route, turn left into Via F.lli Cervi following the signs for Correggio, then left in Via S. Faustino (about 3 km).
Historical notes
According to tradition, the original primitive temple was built by order of Countess Matilde di Canossa, who possessed numerous holdings in the area. The church is one of the oldest in the diocese, mentioned in a document written by the bishop of Reggio Emilia in the year 945 and more explicitly cited in 980. The façade was reconstructed in 1870 in the Lombard style on the design by Professor Faccioli of Bologna. The arched portal is decorated with marble columns and a small temple surmounted by an ancient two-light mullioned window. Four octagonal spires with crosses are situated at the top of the façade. In the rear part, the three apses are visible, partitioned by pilaster strips and characterised by the sequence of arches; some trusses show geometric elements while others have depictions of symbolic animals. Also notable are the oblong windows with splayed jamb. The interior architecture has been extensively transformed, and only part of the elements of the ancient structure are visible. The tabernacle in Carrara marble holds a fine thirteenth-century fresco of the Madonna with Child and an eighteenth-century painting of the Saints Faustino and Giovita.
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