San Giuseppe dei Teatini, Palermo

Church of Saint Joseph of the Theatines
Chiesa di San Giuseppe dei Teatini (in Italian)
Façade from the Quattro Canti
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Province	Archdiocese of Palermo
Rite	Roman Rite
Location
Location	Palermo, Italy
Geographic coordinates	38°06′54.76″N 13°21′41.55″E
Architecture
Style	Sicilian Baroque
Groundbreaking	1612
Completed	1677

Vault over the nave

The interior

San Giuseppe dei Teatini is a Roman Catholic church on via Vittorio Emanuele, at the southwest corner of the Quattro Canti, in the historic center of the city of Palermo, region of Sicily, Italy. The east flank of the nave faces the Fontana Pretoria, across the piazza from Santa Caterina. San Giuseppe is an example of the Sicilian Baroque in Palermo.

History

The church was built at the beginning of the 17th century by Giacomo Besio, a Genoese member of the Theatine order. It has a majestic though simple façade. In the centre niche is housed a statue of San Gaetano, founder of the order. Another striking feature is the large dome with a blue and yellow majolica covering. The tambour decorated with double columns, and was designed by Giuseppe Mariani. The belfry tower was designed by Paolo Amato.

The interior has a Latin cross plan with a nave and two aisles, divided by marble columns of variable height. The inner decoration is a nearly overwhelming parade of Baroque art, with stuccoes by Paolo Corso and Giuseppe Serpotta. Frescoes decorate the nave ceiling and the transept vault, painted by Filippo Tancredi, Guglielmo Borremans and Giuseppe Velasquez. The frescoes were severely damaged during World War II, but have been accurately restored. The most important piece of art is however a wood crucifix by Fra' Umile of Petralia.

The crypt houses remains of a former church, dedicated to Madonna of Providence.

References

• Description page in Italian