Chiesa di San Francesco

The Church of San Francesco, with its elegant sharp bell tower, is one of the oldest and most representative monuments of the city. This building, together with the convent that stood next to it, was founded in 1424 by the Observant Friars Minor led by Fra Vincenzo da Cori. After some difficulties with the local clergy, the convent was definitively established in 1436. Starting from 1438, the expansion work of the original small church began, which ended around 1442, when Alberto de la Nichixola celebrated its dedication on July 16. By 1480, a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, desired by Alessandro Pigafetta, a prominent member of the Vicentine nobility, had been built. A new period of construction opened in the 16th century and saw the construction of the side nave (already attested in 1512), the raising of the bell tower completed in 1522, and, above all, a series of decorative works. In 1810, the Franciscan convent was suppressed and the city hospital was moved there. The subsequent adaptation works transformed the building, which only retains the two cloisters from the old structure. The current appearance is the result of restoration work carried out between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The exterior of the temple features a characteristic asymmetric façade (19th century), preceded by a portico with ribbed vaults. A decoration with terracotta arches marks the side wall (the Red Cross present here marked the hospital during the war). The interior features a central nave with a trussed roof and a side chapel. Numerous works are preserved in the church, from the wooden choir dating back to 1504, created by Bernardino de Rochis, to the Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, painted by Francesco Verla (1512), to the panels under the trusses, also by Verla (1520), to the altarpiece of the main altar by Francesco Maffei, and the Madonna between Saints John the Baptist and Paul by Gian Francesco Zilio. Noteworthy is the wooden crucifix, dating possibly to the 14th century. The floor hosts twenty-four burial tombs of the noblest families in the city, with inscriptions and coats of arms.