Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo

The mother church of San Michele Arcangelo was rebuilt around the mid-16th century on the foundations of a previous church, of which there are records dating back to 1486 during the visit of Bishop Serafino da Squilacce. The probable designers and builders of the building were the architect Gabriele Riccardi from Lecce, and his pupil, the sculptor Giovanni Maria Tarantino from Nardò. It was completed in 1573 and absorbed an ancient chapel dedicated to San Rocco.\n\nThe façade, framed by two powerful lateral pilasters, is characterized by the large Baroque rose window that recalls that of the Basilica of Santa Croce in Lecce. The interior, in the Latin cross and single nave, has a ribbed vault ceiling adorned with sculpted cords that connect the keystones. The only altars present are in the transept and are dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and San Rocco. The apse in Lecce stone, sculpted by the sculptor Gabriele Riccardi, is particularly valuable. It is divided into two levels: the first consists of a series of niches set between Corinthian columns with the lower part covered in carvings, crowned by a trabeation with frieze; the second level, however, is made of rectangular and square mirrors closed between lesenes with spiral decoration and surmounted by a second trabeation. From this, corresponding to the columns and the underlying lesenes, the six ribs of the dome rise to meet at the keystone of the arch, on which the inscription reads: Parata sedes tua Deus quam decet sanctitudo in longitudinem dierum 1573.\n\nThe interior was altered during the restoration work after 1975, which led to the removal of the main altar, the organ, and the Baroque stucco decorations.