Santa Caterina, Baroque church in Lucca, Italy
Santa Caterina is a Baroque church in Lucca with a distinctive oval floor plan and a corner entrance facing Via Vittorio Emanuele. The interior features prominent metal grates installed on the walls and a dome that opens above to allow natural light to fill the space.
The church was built in the first half of the 18th century under the direction of architect Francesco Pini and represents Lucca's largest Baroque structure for religious purposes. Its construction was closely tied to an adjacent convent for women, which shaped how the building was designed and used.
The church is named after Saint Caterina and was designed as a prayer space for nuns living in the adjoining convent. The oval layout and interior details reflect the specific spiritual practices of the religious community that inhabited this place.
The church sits at the intersection of Via del Crocifisso and Via Vittorio Emanuele in central Lucca and is easy to reach on foot. Access to the interior is currently possible only by appointment, so visitors should arrange a visit ahead of time.
The metal grates installed on the interior walls served a specific purpose: they concealed the faces of the nuns during prayer from outside view. This architectural choice reveals how the building was carefully designed to support the convent's spiritual practices and seclusion.
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