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S. Bartolomeo de' Fossi

An Abandoned 19th‑Century Church near Umbertide

[image ALT: A tall 2‑story building of plastered stone with a gabled roof, and annexes on either side, only slightly lower, of rough mixed masonry. It is the church of S. Bartolomeo de' Fossi near Umbertide, Umbria (central Italy).]

The monumentally proportioned church of S. Bartolomeo de' Fossi is only 12 km from Umbertide, and by a good road, too; but it feels very remote, standing in complete isolation, strikingly sited on a sharp green forested ridge with distant views, of more forest, on either side. It was built in the 19c as a conventual church for a religious order, or so I was told: I have no better information. I suspect a previous building, if only a small hermitage: but that's just surmise on my part.

[image ALT: A wide and rather low barrel-vaulted hall of three bays closed at the end by a flat wall pierced with a small circular window. The vaults spring from square pilasters, and in the bays nearest us, left and right, are two facing altars each with a large niche over it. An electric wire and light dangel disconsolately from a steel brace across the hall, the brick floor is damaged in spots, and a single wooden pew juts out from the left side at an angle. It is the interior of the abandoned church of S. Bartolomeo de' Fossi near Umbertide, Umbria (central Italy).]

The interior of the church is clearly in rather good condition, and, on the surface at least, looks like it might only take a crew of volunteers a week of work (plus electricity and water) to get it back up and running. On the other hand, it really is in the middle of nowhere, and I can't imagine anyone but a monastic community ever using it. It's a pity, since buildings require maintenance: water infiltration and the occasional earthquake tremor (see for example this closeup of a ceiling) can wreck the sturdiest structure in pretty short order.


For now, S. Bartolomeo is still quite sturdy. Belfry at the back of the church, oddly invisible from the front; a side altar.

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