The Abbey of San Clemente a Casauria

A Romanesque masterpiece with a carved portal of rare refinement

In the valley of the Pescara river, in the municipality of Castiglione a Casauria, along the ancient route connecting Rome to the Adriatic, stands the Abbey of San Clemente a Casauria, one of the most important monuments of medieval Abruzzo. It was founded in 871 by the Carolingian emperor Louis II, who brought here the relics of Pope Saint Clement, and it became one of the richest and most powerful abbeys of central Italy, with vast lands and castles; its history is told in the "Chronicon Casauriense", an illuminated chronicle written by the monks in the twelfth century, now in the National Library of Paris. Destroyed by the Saracens and damaged by earthquakes, the church was rebuilt from 1176 by the abbot Leonate, who gave it its present form.

The façade is preceded by an elegant portico with three arches, and the main portal is a masterpiece of Romanesque sculpture, of rare refinement, with reliefs depicting the history of the abbey, with Louis II, the abbot Leonate offering the church and Saint Clement, and decorated with plant motifs, animals and figures. The interior, with three naves, austere and harmonious, preserves splendid furnishings of the twelfth century: a magnificent sculpted pulpit, a paschal candelabrum and the main altar, made from an early Christian sarcophagus, under a ciborium. Under the church, the crypt preserves remains of the original ninth-century church. The abbey, restored after the earthquake of 2009, is surrounded by a quiet garden.

Tip: take time to observe the details of the portal and the pulpit; combine the visit with the Majella hermitages.

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