Sacro Cuore di Gesù, Minor basilica in Pace district, Grosseto, Italy.
Sacro Cuore di Gesù is a modern-functional basilica on via della Pace in Grosseto, built 1954–1958 to a design by engineer Ernesto Ganelli. Its travertine facade is preceded by a flight of steps and closed by a three-order portico of round arches, topped by four bronze statues by Tolomeo Faccendi. The side and rear walls are brick, and an octagonal brick campanile 75 metres tall rises on the right flank.
The basilica was designed by architect Ernesto Ganelli and opened on April 26, 1958. Its construction marked the establishment of a new religious center in Grosseto during the post-war period.
The basilica was commissioned by bishop Paolo Galeazzi as a memorial to the 134 civilians killed in the American bombing of Grosseto on 26 April 1943, Easter Monday, including children at a funfair outside the city walls. The crypt lists the names of those who died in all World War II bombings of the city, and Galeazzi, who died in 1971, is buried there.
The basilica stands on via della Pace in the north-eastern part of Grosseto, set back behind a flight of steps that leads up to the travertine pronaos. The octagonal brick bell tower, 75 metres tall, rises on the right side and is visible from outside the city. The crypt commemorating the 1943 bombing is inside, below the single wide nave.
The dome's gilded statue of Christ with open arms, placed above the lantern, is 55 metres up; the octagonal brick campanile beside it reaches 75 metres and is the highest point in Grosseto, its copper-clad pyramid visible from outside the city. The crypt holds the names of those killed in Grosseto's World War II bombings, and bishop Paolo Galeazzi, who died in 1971, is buried there.
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