Chiesa dei Santi Felice e Baccolo, Baroque church in central Sorrento, Italy.
The Chiesa dei Santi Felice e Baccolo is a baroque church in central Sorrento. Its facade is divided by a trabeation: the lower part has a large portal between two pilasters, the upper part a niche with a statue of Saint Baccolo and two rectangular windows. The interior has a single nave clad in polychrome marble, with a coffered ceiling and a chapel on each side.
The church stands on the site of a Roman temple, possibly dedicated to Jupiter or to all the gods. Sources disagree on its origin: some name 310 under Constantine I, others Duke Sergio of Sorrento in the 12th century. When the cathedral moved inside the walls in the 12th century, this church took that role until the 15th century, when Santi Filippo e Giacomo was inaugurated.
The church holds a remarkable collection of ex-votos left by worshippers in its crypt, each object expressing personal gratitude and prayer. These offerings tell stories of people who came here to ask for help or give thanks.
The church stands in Sorrento's historic centre, a short walk from Piazza Tasso through narrow lanes; the entrance is on the lower part of the facade, below the niche with the statue of Saint Baccolo. The interior is a single nave, so the chapels and the 18th-century high altar are seen in one pass. The crypt of 1753, reached below the altar, holds the ex-votos.
Among the artworks is an 18th-century Neapolitan presepe, a nativity scene assembled from separately carved figures rather than a single painting. It stands alongside a 1734 canvas of Saint Baccolo by Giovanni Bernardo and statues of Saint Joseph, Saint Irene, Saint Louis and Saint Michael.
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