• Art & Culture
    • Religious Tourism

Chiesa di San Francesco

The church of San Francesco is one of the main Medieval monuments in the city of Lodi. It dates back to 1252.

Where
Piazza Ospitale, 26900 Lodi LO
Contacts
0371 420019
Official site

The church of San Francesco is one of the main Medieval monuments in the city of Lodi.

It dates back to 1252, when the bishop of Lodi, Bongiovanni Fissiraga reintroduced the Friars Minor back to the city, previously expelled years before due to the intolerance of the Ghibelline faction, assigning them the small church of S. Nicolò.

A few years later, presumably starting in the eighties, the friars began building a new church, the work on which must have already been at a good point in 1290, when the remains of bishop Bongiovanni were placed there. Supporters of the work were Antonio Fissiraga (possibly the nephew of the bishop) and his wife Flora dei Tresseni.

The church is built in the Romanic Gothic style and has an incomplete façade just above the central rose window and is characterised by its “open air” mullioned windows, a particular detail of Lodi, giving the front a lighter feel. Just under the rose window is a porch with terracotta columns placed on high stone plinths.

The interior, with three naves with lateral chapels and transept, is laid out in a style that was quite widespread in Lombard architecture, adopting the layout using the acute arch design on a cylindrical pillar with cross vaults. The church holds within it the most complete collection of Lodi paintings starting from the Fourteenth century; among these are the votive frescoes, “Madonna col Bambino, i ss Nicola e Francesco e Antonio Fissiraga che presenta il modellino della chiesa” [Virgin Mary with child, the Saints Nicola and Francesco with Antonio Fissiraga presenting a model of the church]. The author, an anonymous Lombard painter, who well knew Giotto’s painting style, is often referred to as Maestro dei Fissiraga.

Lastly, not to be missed, in the right-hand nave, the third chapel dedicated to S. Bernardino da Siena, with frescoes painted by Gian Giacomo da Lodi, twenty-two frames depicting the life of the saint, dating back to 1477. Gian Giacomo’s style is simple and didactic, completely without late-Gothic elements, yet it still has highly educated elements like the use of perspective, demonstrating the passage to a more Humanist phase.


Opening hours

From Monday to Saturday: 6:30 - 12:00 and 17:00 - 18:30

Sunday: 7:00 - 12:00 and 17:00 - 18:30

Take me here: Chiesa di San Francesco

Places

Collegio San Francesco

The Museum of Natural Sciences, owned by the Barnabite Fathers, was founded in 1833 and offers a large collection of animal specimens.
  • Art & Culture
Collegio San Francesco
80 mt

L’Ospedale Maggiore (entrata da via Agostino Bassi)

  • Art & Culture
L’Ospedale Maggiore (entrata da via Agostino Bassi)
85 mt

Liceo P. Verri - Aula Magna

Founded as a convent it was handed over to the Benedictine nuns who built the church in 1588 (today's Aula Magna).
  • Art & Culture
Liceo P. Verri -  Aula Magna
122 mt

Teatro alle Vigne

The Teatro alle Vigne became the Municipal Theatre in 1985
  • Musica e spettacolo
Teatro alle Vigne - Lodi
133 mt

Palazzo Fissiraga

  • Art & Culture
Palazzo Fissiraga
134 mt

Palazzo mozzanica

Also known as the Varesi palace, it is a historic building in the city of Lodi. Its construction dates back to the fifteenth century
  • Art & Culture
Palazzo Mozzanica
166 mt

Complesso e Pia Casa di Ricovero Santa Chiara

  • Art & Culture
Complesso e Pia Casa di Ricovero Santa Chiara
174 mt

Palazzo Cadamosto

The palazzo was the home of the Cadamosto family
  • Art & Culture
Palazzo Cadamosto
193 mt

Complesso Santa Chiara Nuova

The complex was built on land donated to the community of the Clarisse conventuals of Lodi by Martino Cassini
  • Art & Culture
Complesso Santa Chiara Nuova
267 mt

Palazzo Galeano

  • Art & Culture
Di Arbalete - Opera propria, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=79923745
286 mt

L’Ospedale Maggiore

  • Art & Culture
L’Ospedale Maggiore
304 mt

Palazzo Modignani - Ghisalberti

  • Art & Culture
Palazzo Modignani - Ghisalberti
307 mt

Palazzo San Filippo

The building houses the Filippini library consisting of approximately 11,000 volumes.
  • Art & Culture
Palazzo San Filippo
331 mt

Duomo of Lodi

  • Religious Tourism
@inlombardia
347 mt

Chiesa di San Filippo

The church of San Filippo has a stunning façade, characterised by an ascensional rhythm
  • Religious Tourism
Chiesa di San Filippo
355 mt

Palazzo Sommariva

  • Art & Culture
Palazzo Sommariva
358 mt

Il Broletto

  • Art & Culture
Il Broletto
384 mt

Piazza della vittoria in lodi

Known as Piazza Maggiore, it is the scenic city center since the municipal era and still today a lively meeting place
  • Art & Culture
Piazza della Vittoria in Lodi
398 mt

Chiesa di Sant'Agnese

The church of Sant'Agnese was built in the XIV century, passing, in 1351, to the Order of Saint Augustine.
  • Art & Culture
Chiesa di Sant'Agnese
403 mt

Tempio dell'Incoronata

One of the most beautiful buildings of Renaissance Lombardy, Tempio dell'Incoronata built with the contribution of all social classes
  • Religious Tourism
Tempio dell'Incoronata, Lodi
444 mt

Where to sleep

PENSIONATO MONSIGNOR RAVERA

Lodi
PENSIONATO MONSIGNOR RAVERA
279 mt

CASA DELLA GIOVANE

Lodi
CASA DELLA GIOVANE
285 mt

CASETTA DI PAOLA

Lodi
CASETTA DI PAOLA
353 mt

B&B LODI CENTRO

Lodi
B&B LODI CENTRO
457 mt

B&B ART IN CENTRO

Lodi
B&B ART IN CENTRO
469 mt

LA GALLINA B&B

Lodi
LA GALLINA B&B
555 mt

HOTEL CASTELLO

Lodi
HOTEL CASTELLO
641 mt

ALBERGO ANELLI

Lodi
ALBERGO ANELLI
692 mt

HOUSE RELAX

Lodi
HOUSE RELAX
779 mt

B&B ARIA DI CAMPAGNA

Lodi
B&B ARIA DI CAMPAGNA
946 mt

HOTEL CONCORDE LODI CENTRO

Lodi
HOTEL CONCORDE LODI CENTRO
955 mt

HOTEL EUROPA

Lodi
HOTEL EUROPA
1.25 km

VILLA LAILA

Lodi
VILLA LAILA
1.3 km

HOTEL LODI

Lodi
HOTEL LODI
1.97 km

JACKY HOUSE 3.0

Lodi
JACKY HOUSE 3.0
2.1 km

AGRITURISMO CASCINA DELLA FONTANA

Lodi
AGRITURISMO CASCINA DELLA FONTANA
2.42 km

AGRITURISMO CAVRIGO

Lodi
AGRITURISMO CAVRIGO
2.58 km

AGRITURISMO IL GLICINE

Lodi
AGRITURISMO IL GLICINE
3.44 km

MOTEL AUTOSOLE

Cornegliano Laudense
MOTEL AUTOSOLE
4.2 km

SOCIETà AGRICOLA MULINO DI PRADA S.S.

Corte Palasio
SOCIETà AGRICOLA MULINO DI PRADA S.S.
4.45 km