The rather austere exterior houses one of the most finely decorated Baroque churches in the region. The church of Santa Lucia is rather small and consists of a single nave but has an incredible decoration between Baroque and Rococo that will amaze you with its elegance and richness wherever you look.
Over the centuries the church underwent several interventions until it was destroyed by an earthquake in 1650. It was later rebuilt and re-consecrated in 1726. Today it is one of the best preserved examples of Baroque in the Marche region: a single nave with six side chapels and rich decorations in paintings, stucco and gilded wooden panelling.
Of particular artistic interest are the five large canvases depicting Scenes from the Life of Saint Lucy by Pasqualino Rossi, an artist of Vicenza origin who was particularly active in Rome and in the Marche region where he produced a large number of works, now also preserved in the churches of Cagli and Fabriano. The complete cycle of the Saint, placed on the high altar and work of the full maturity of the painter, was commissioned by the Silvestrini Fathers. The canvases represent the most important work of the artist in which it is possible to grasp the two most characteristic aspects of his painting: genre painting and sacred painting. The painting depicting the alms of Saint Lucia is admirable, in which typical elements of daily life give a popular flavour to the sacred. The lacerations of the canvases
The lacerations of the canvases that are observed along the relative frames recall the theft made by the monks to subtract the canvases from the requisition ordered by Napoleon.
The choir of the church, located in the apse behind the main altar, is for the most part in finely worked walnut-root wood, with mirrors inlaid according to a design. In the choir there is also a beautiful cantorino.
The baroque church organ, dating from 1676, is the prestigious work of Giuseppe Maria Testa. The organ is placed in the choir loft above the entrance door, inside a wooden case with a richly carved and gilded front.
Adjacent to the church is the former convent of Santa Lucia, now the town’s museum centre, which houses the Marche Region Historical Map Library, the Ermanno Casoli Award Museum (contemporary art), the headquarters of the Regional Natural Park of the Gola della Rossa and Frasassi and the Museum of Natural History of the territory.
Another gem of the church are the relics. It keeps a lot of them (one of the churches in the Marche region with the highest number!) and each one has its cartouche that certifies its originality.
