La collegiata di San Pietro Apostolo a Minturno. Dallo sviluppo della forma ai restauri novecenteschi

Abstract

The essay analyzes the phases of construction of the collegiate church of St. Peter the Apostle in Minturno (LT), from the single-
nave layout of the first phase to the current shape of the three-nave complex, this study combines indirect analysis of historical
sources with direct investigation of the building itself. Ke research examines its history from the time when medieval Traetto
(which became Minturno in 1879) was governed by the Pope’s Rectors. The first phase dates back to the VIII-X century, characterized
by the establishment of a single nave core with an façade featuring an oblique layout, linked to a problem of visual fruition;
the construction of an axial bell tower reflecting the architectural tastes of the southern Italy at the time; and the enlargements
during the Norman period with the three-nave layout and the use of classical elements (columns and spolia capitals from the
nearby Roman city of Minturnae), according to a construction practice that characterizes the period and recalls in the shape (with
tripartite choir solutions and lunette-adorned trilithic portals) the components that derive from Benedictine buildings, in particular
Montecassino; the construction of the presbytery, of the extradosed vaults and the front portico; the strengthening program
of the Caetani family in the fourteenth-fifteenth century, to whom we owe the construction of the oratory.
All this supported by the studies of construction techniques and investigating the restorations carried out by Aldo Avena and
Giuseppe Abatino (1898-1903), Gino Chierici (1926), Carlo Ceschi (1953-56), Giuseppe Zander (1966-1968), which have
provided valuable insights into the history of this religious complex.

Keywords : Medieval religious architecture, collegiate church of St. Peter, normans, Caetani, restorations.