Model Reconstruction of the Basilica of San Leucio (Canosa di Puglia, Italy)
In the sixth century, Bishop Sabinus of Canosa transformed the site of a Hellenistic-era temple to Minerva into a magnificent basilica dedicated to the doctor-saints Cosmas and Damian. The site is located southest of the city center on the hill now known as San Leucio. Rather than destroying the temple, the builders reused the architectural materials of the temple -- the columns and capitals, the foundation stones -- keeping some in their original state and reworking others. The basilica was a double tetraconch shape -- square with an apse on each of the four sides, inside and outside. Archaeologists have noted similarities with basilicas found in Syria, and there are also similarities to the basilica of San Lorenzo in Milan. A carpet of mosaic flooring in geometric designs was a also a feature of this once grandiose edifice, the largest Early Christian site in Puglia. The basilica underwent a second phase of (re-)construction in the eighth century after an earthquake. It was later dedicated to San Leucio.
This is a model reconstruction of the basilica currently housed in the Antiquarium museum on site at Canosa.
Follow me on Twitter @arturoviaggia
Model Reconstruction of the Basilica of San Leucio (Canosa di Puglia, Italy)
In the sixth century, Bishop Sabinus of Canosa transformed the site of a Hellenistic-era temple to Minerva into a magnificent basilica dedicated to the doctor-saints Cosmas and Damian. The site is located southest of the city center on the hill now known as San Leucio. Rather than destroying the temple, the builders reused the architectural materials of the temple -- the columns and capitals, the foundation stones -- keeping some in their original state and reworking others. The basilica was a double tetraconch shape -- square with an apse on each of the four sides, inside and outside. Archaeologists have noted similarities with basilicas found in Syria, and there are also similarities to the basilica of San Lorenzo in Milan. A carpet of mosaic flooring in geometric designs was a also a feature of this once grandiose edifice, the largest Early Christian site in Puglia. The basilica underwent a second phase of (re-)construction in the eighth century after an earthquake. It was later dedicated to San Leucio.
This is a model reconstruction of the basilica currently housed in the Antiquarium museum on site at Canosa.
Follow me on Twitter @arturoviaggia