Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, Minor basilica in Santa Maria degli Angeli, Italy
The Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli is a papal church in Assisi, Umbria, built in Baroque style with a tall dome rising above the central nave. Inside, the Portiuncula, a small medieval stone chapel, stands enclosed by the larger structure, surrounded by tall columns and side altars.
Work began in March 1569 under plans by architects Galeazzo Alessi and Vignola to protect and frame the small 9th-century Portiuncula chapel. The dome was finished in 1667, and the entire structure reached completion in 1679 after more than a century of labor.
The name refers to the angels Francis of Assisi heard in prayer at the Porziuncola, the 9th-century chapel the basilica encloses. The chapel is also called "Little Portion" because Benedictine monks gave Francis this small piece of land. Each 2 August, the Pardon of Assisi is celebrated here, drawing pilgrims to the chapel under the dome.
Visitors enter through the main doors and walk straight to the Portiuncula chapel in the center, where lines often form. The side chapels and rose garden are open and offer quieter spaces for those seeking a moment apart.
The rose garden beside the apse is linked to a night when Francis, troubled by doubt, rolled in the thorns; tradition says the bushes lost their thorns and still flower without them. In the Chapel of the Transito, a glass case holds the rope of St. Francis, and behind the altar stands a glazed terracotta statue of the saint by Andrea della Robbia from around 1490.
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