Former church of San Barbaziano, church in Bologna (BO)

The former church of San Barbaziano stands at the corner of via Barberia and via Cesare Battisti in Bologna. Pietro Fiorini rebuilt it between 1608 and 1612 as a single-nave church with eight side chapels, four per side, some incorporated from the earlier church. Long use as a military depot stripped most decoration, and the 2020s restoration keeps its "urban ruin" look.

Tradition attributes its founding to Saint Petronius in 432, though the first certain records date from 1123. Canons Regular of the Lateran held it with an adjoining convent, passing it in 1480 to the Hermits of Saint Jerome of the Observance. Pietro Fiorini rebuilt it from the foundations between 1608 and 1612 for the Tridentine liturgy. The order was suppressed in 1797, the convent sold in 1799, the church closed in 1806 and bought by the Comune in 1813; in 1870 it passed to the military Demanio, which used it as a depot and added a mezzanine floor.

The church is dedicated to Saint Barbatianus, a figure in Bologna's religious tradition. Before deconsecration its chapels held works by Errico Fiammingo, Giuseppe Monticelli, Giacomo Francia and Girolamo Curti, funded by families such as the Laghi, Palmieri and Sacchi. All the artwork has since been removed.

The former church stands at the corner of via Barberia and via Cesare Battisti, 35, in central Bologna. It is not open to visitors: the building is managed by the regional museum directorate and a restoration and conversion project is under way, with reopening announced for spring 2026. The exterior can be seen from the street.

The 2020s restoration deliberately keeps the look of an "urban ruin" and highlights the building's successive construction and decoration phases. A mezzanine floor added by the military administration in the 19th century remains part of the structure. The reopening as a centre of circus and accessible art was announced for spring 2026.