Collegio  dei Gesuiti 
in the morning sunshine

Collegio die Gesuiti

Trapani, Italy

"The church of the Jesuit college is a baroque church in Trapani , dedicated to the Immaculate Conception , located in Corso Vittorio Emanuele, in the historic center. Adjacent, on the right of the church, is the building of the former college, while the former convent overlooks Via Roma.

Church Sign

"When the Jesuits arrived in Trapani, in 1581 and in 1596, they obtained permission to build the church, thanks to the donations of the city Senate, with annexed the college, and the convent. The church was designed in 1614 by the Jesuit Messinese Christmas architect Masuccio and is one of the most significant Baroque monuments of the city 

"The church was consecrated in 1705. After the suppression of the Society of Jesus in 1767, the Jesuit Fathers had to leave Trapani in 1770 and their property passed under the jurisdiction of the diocese of Mazara del Vallo .

"The College then became the high school gymnasium Ximenes after the unification of Italy, while the convent was the seat of the court until the 1950s.

"Closed, since the beginning of the restoration works, since 1961, and was reopened in January 2003, but the works of architectural restoration of the church by the superintendence were definitively completed only in 2011 .

Front of  Church

"The interior has three naves, with columns and arches in Serliana. The walls are decorated with stuccos made by Bartolomeo Sanseverino, a student of the Serpotta , and by marbles.

"In the eighteenth century it was built by the architect Giovanni Biagio Amico la Cappella di Sant'Ignazio , valuable painting depicting St. Ignatius of Loyola , ^[3] by Vito Carreca .

"Among the paintings there is a painting depicting St. Francis Xavier by Pietro Novelli  , an altarpiece depicting the Immaculate Conception by Geronimo Gerardi and a wooden cupboard in the sacristy of Pietro Orlando . 

"In the apse there is the icon of the Immaculate , sculpted in 1766 by relief on white marble, by Ignazio Marabitti . ^[3] The precious works of inlays of colored marbles are prominent in the church; among the most valuable the altar dedicated to St. Ignatius of Loyola and the precious pulpit." (Link 1) 

Trapani

Location of Trapani in Italy (Link 2.)

"Trapani [ˈtraːpani]  listen (help·info) (Sicilian: Tràpani; Latin: Drepanon, Greek: Δρέπανον) is a city and comune on the west coast of Sicily in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the main gateway to the nearby Egadi Islands" (Link 2/)

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Photos: Taken in October 2018 by RW  while travelling to Italy. 

Link 1: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiesa_del_collegio_dei_Gesuiti
Link 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trapani

                                                                          Prayer

God, be with persecuted Christians throughout the world. Amen (SW.)