Chiaravalle Abbey, Fiastra

The monastery of Chiaravalle di Fiastra, also Abbazia Santa Maria di Fiastra, is a Cistercian monastery in today's Marche region, Italy. It is about twelve kilometers east of Tolentino and ten kilometers south of Macerata in the province of Macerata, the creek Fiastra, a tributary of the river Chienti.

History

The monastery may have been established on the site of an already existing 1098 Benedictine monastery in 1142 by Duke Garnerio of Spoleto and settled in the same year from Chiaravalle Milanese monastery under the guidance of Abbot Ugo. Thus, it belonged to the filiation of Clairvaux Abbey Primary. With a bull of Pope Alexander III. was the monastery of the Benedictine monastery of Santa Croce in 1165 Fiastra del Chienti assumed, however, that in the documents of the Cistercian order in 1285 and does not appear to ruin was. 1456 fell monastery Fiastra in Upcoming and was built in 1581 by Pope Gregory XIII. to the Jesuits. The remaining Cistercian moved forward to Rome in the church of San Vito back. The local monastery suffered in 1623 the Roman province of Italian Cistercian Congregation. The monastery Fiastra came after the abolition of the Jesuit order in 1773 to the Marquis Bandini di Camerino, who turned the monastery into a country residence. The church was entrusted to the Augustinians few years later and finally in 1963 to the parish church. 1985, a Cistercian monastery was opened in Chiaravalle di Fiastra with a small community of monks of Chiaravalle Milanese again.

Plant and buildings

Stylistically The monastery follows the Cistercian monasteries of the Po Valley. The remarkably long brick church essentially follows the bernhardi American plan, that shows a Latin cross with three-aisled nave ( with supports change), transept with well retrofitted arches and two barrel-vaulted side chapels on both sides of the east and rectangular main choir with ribbed vaults. Of the four long house Jochen is the westernmost kreuzgratgewölbt (instead of the originally well- intended tunnel vault ). The eight bays of the aisles, however, are fully arched. The church has a porch in the west with a Romanesque arch portal and right and left of two triforium. The west facade has a potentially datable only to the Jesuit rose marble with twelve marble columns. The cloister south (right) next to the church has a rising in the middle ground. Of the monastic buildings of sechsjochige chapter house has been preserved in the east wing, west and south wings are redesigned.