BASILICA
OF SANTA MARIA DEGLI ANGELI
The
basilica was built in the mannerist style between 1569 and 1679. It
has a rectangular ground
plan, divided into a central nave and two lateral aisles, with ten
side chapels, a transept and a choir. The church is 126 meters long,
65 meters large and the dome is 75 meters high.
Inside
this church there is the Porziuncola
that is a little church of the 9th
century. In this little church Francis of Assisi decided to give up
the world of rich people to live in poverty among the poor and here
he started the Franciscan movement.
The
transito
The
Cappella del Transito is the small room where St. Francis died 3rd
October 1226. It was a little hut used for ill people.
The
Rose Garden
The
rose garden is the last remains of the ancient wood in which St
Francis and his friars lived. Here he talked to the doves, inviting
them to praise the Lord. Doves have been nesting since a long time in
the hands of the statue of St. Francis in this rose garden.
According
to tradition, one night St. Francis, feeling the temptation to
abandon his way of life, rolled naked in the bramble thorns. In
contact with his body, the bramble bushes turned into dog roses (rosa
canina) without thorns. Since then, these flowers are here in this
garden.
Bifora
or window with two lights is the symbol of humanity and divinity.
Trifora
or window with three lights is the symbol of the Trinity (The Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit).
Rose
window
is the symbol of Christ.
First and second year students will be involved in this competition in the following weeks and they have to take a picture of an animal (ex. cat, dog, fish, tortoise, butterfly, ladybird, hamster, bird, squirrel, cow, sheep, goat, rabbit, chicken, hen, pigeon, horse, donkey, worm, lizard,...).
