Santa Maria in Porto Basilica, Minor basilica in Ravenna, Italy.
Santa Maria in Porto Basilica is a church on via Roma in Ravenna, set back from a rectangular forecourt with flowerbeds and approached by a staircase finished in 1783. Its white Istrian stone facade, completed in 1784 by Camillo Morigia, has two tiers: an Ionic lower order across all three naves and a Corinthian upper order over the central nave. The central portal is topped by a 1689 statue of the Greek Madonna, supported by fifth-century columns from the lost Basilica of San Lorenzo in Caesarea.
Construction began in 1553 following Pope Julius II's commission to architect Bernardino Tavella, with the building formally consecrated in 1606. The extended construction period reflects the importance placed on this religious structure in Ravenna's development.
The church is home to the Greek Madonna, a venerated image whose cult was restored by Archbishop Vincenzo Moretti and his successors in the late 19th century. On 21 April 1900, the 800th anniversary of its miraculous appearance, the image was solemnly crowned. Monks of the Order of Saint Paul, the First Hermit, still officiate Mass here.
The basilica faces a rectangular open space with flower beds, reached by a staircase finished in 1783. The entrance is on via Roma, the north–south street through the historic centre, a short walk from Porta Nuova. Part of the former monastery houses the Pinacoteca civica, so the church and gallery can be seen together.
Inside the basilica resides an icon called the Greek Madonna, which received a ceremonial crowning in 1900. This special rite marked an 800-year commemoration of the image's reported appearance and remains a defining element of the church's character.
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