San Nicola dei Lorenesi, Baroque church near Piazza Navona, Italy.
San Nicola dei Lorenesi is a baroque church in Rome, located near Piazza Navona. It has a single nave with two side chapels and a short transept, giving the floor plan the shape of the Cross of Lorraine.
The church was rebuilt by architect François Desjardins and completed in 1632 to serve as a place of worship for the Duchy of Lorraine's community at the Holy See. It replaced an earlier building that had already been used by that community.
San Nicola dei Lorenesi was the national church of the Lorraine community settled in Rome, and it still carries that identity today. The interior features paintings and colored marbles made by artists from the region, giving the space a character tied to that specific community.
The church sits on Largo Febo, a short walk from Piazza Navona, and is easy to find on foot. Visitors can enter during regular services and weekday prayer hours.
The facade carries a Latin inscription reading "In honorem S Nicolai natio Lotharingorum F", which directly names both the patron saint and the people who commissioned the building. The text is carved into stone and still clearly readable today.
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