St. Anthony’s Church originated as a country church around the mid-1400s, and the old cemetery was located where the square stands today. On June 12, 1768, Monsignor Pilo, responding to citizens’ requests, began to adorn and enhance the church. In the following year, on December 30, 1769, the same Monsignor Pilo with a solemn procession brought the Eucharist and Holy Oils to the church, allowing Holy Mass to be celebrated on Sundays from then on. However, it was not until 1947 that St. Anthony became a parish in its own right.
The Church has undergone various restorations over the years that have stripped it of many of its original features such as the marble altar, balustrade, pulpit, baptismal font and typical wooden roof. At the event, the church will host a collection of ancient statues of great artistic value and an unprecedented collection of vestments and church furnishings. In the chapels it will be possible to view reproductions of old photos of the Church, which testify to the intense and active religious devotion, as well as a chance to see today compared with the past.
During the event, on the premises of the renovated “Oratorio Parrocchiale San Filippo Neri” it will be possible to visit the solo exhibition of Master Augusto Mola, descendant of a generation of absolutely talented ceramic masters: first his grandfather Alessandro, and then his father Stelio, dedicated themselves with passion and great results to this artistic discipline. Augusto has picked up this tradition, elaborating his own skillful “neo-realism” that prefers Sardinian subjects dressed in traditional clothes: his hand restores and embellishes details of lace and embroidery into true collectible sculptures.
