Church of SS. Annuziata of the Catalans

LOCATION: Via Cesare Battisti (in front of Piazza Lepanto) DATING: XII SEC. DESCRIPTION: Originally it was dedicated to S. Maria di Castellamare and took its current name after being given in the XNUMXth century to courtiers and rich Catalan merchants following Pietro d'Aragona. The church, given the progressive lifting of the city due to earthquakes and reconstructions, is now more than three meters below street level. The plan of the church is a Byzantine type basilica divided into three naves with a high dome. The exterior is framed by two rows of columns with elegant capitals and arches inlaid in two colors. On the sides of the nave two walkways lead over the transept passing through elegant mullioned windows. Inside, the Arab-Byzantine influences of the capitals and columns embedded in the apse are visible. FUN FACT: some local historians believe that this basilica stands on the ruins of the Temple of Neptune. SOURCE: Various sources reworked by the Helios Study Center

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