San Tommaso, Ascoli Piceno, Romanesque church in Ascoli Piceno, Italy.
San Tommaso is a Romanesque church built with pale travertine blocks and organized inside with three naves separated by columns. A square bell tower rises beside it and a round window decorates the main facade.
Bishop Bernardo II promoted the church's construction around 1064, together with a college of Lateran Canons of the Augustinian order. The present appearance dates to 13th-century works, which reused spolia from the Roman amphitheatre of the piazza, reburied in 1974. The bell tower houses Ascoli Piceno's oldest bell, dated 1283.
The church is named after the apostle Thomas, whose marble statue by Giuseppe Giosafatti stands to the left of the main altar. The adjoining cloister now houses the Museum of Ceramic Art, and the facade's travertine hooks were used to set up temporary structures during city festivals.
The church is located in the historic center of Ascoli Piceno and sits near other important buildings within walking distance. Plan time to explore both the interior and the surrounding historic quarter with its nearby monuments.
The main altar holds a 16th-century gilded wood tabernacle shaped like a small temple with eight sides. This craft piece is often overlooked by visitors despite revealing the skilled artistry of that era.
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