Parco Archeologico di Castelseprio - Museo - Santa Maria foris portas, Archaeological church complex in Castelseprio, Italy.
Santa Maria foris portas is a church building in the Castelseprio archaeological park with a three-lobed floor plan and a decorated apse. The interior walls are covered with Medieval frescoes that depict religious narratives arranged in multiple layers of scenes.
The church was built as the late Roman settlement transformed into a Lombard fortress and the region became Christian. The building endured the decline of the Medieval town and the destruction of the fortification around it.
The frescoes inside display scenes from Christ's early life arranged in three horizontal bands, painted in a refined Byzantine style that reflects Eastern influences. These images tell religious stories in ways ordinary people could understand, showing how artists of that era worked.
The site is open to visitors who can explore both the church interior and the archaeological remains scattered throughout the park. It is best visited during daylight hours so you can see the frescoes clearly and inspect the ruins surrounding the building.
The frescoes were only discovered in 1944 when restorers removed a layer of later plaster and uncovered the original images beneath. Among them was a rare depiction of a religious trial ritual that remains visible in the church today.
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