Introduction

Pax et bonum dear visitors, and welcome to the Church of San Francesco. The Friars Minor, later called Franciscans, were founded by St Francis in the early 13th century and soon also spread to Modena thanks to the efforts of Blessed Gherardo Boccabadati, a follower of the saint from Assisi. The church of the order was built here, where it still stands today, starting in 1244.The friars remained at San Francesco until 1774, when the reorganisation of the city's parishes forced them to move elsewhere. A few years later, in 1798, the French, the new rulers of Modena, even decided to suppress the church and use it as a warehouse. Needless to say, they had absolutely no regard for the artistic treasures it held! One example of this was an extraordinary 16th-century funeral monument, commissioned by Giacomo Belleardi from the Modenese sculptor Antonio Begarelli, of which only a few fragments now remain in the Modena Civic Museum.  In 1826, Duke Francis IV of Austria-Este commissioned the engineer Gusmano Soli to carry out a thorough restoration of the temple, which was completed in record time, taking only 17 months. The church thus returned to being a point of reference for Modenese spirituality throughout the 19th century. Let's take a look at the church... The simple gabled façade, made entirely of brick, hints at the division into three naves. The interior immediately appears airy and solemn, furrowed by cross vaults entirely decorated in the 19th century with plant motifs and roundels depicting saints and evangelists by Carpi-born sculptor Fermo Forti. These evoke the moods of the old medieval Gothic style, which is also perfectly recognisable in the high altar. Many art treasures await you... start exploring the Church of St. Francis now!