Saint Vincent De’ Paoli’s Church or Mission Church is located in the block between Via and Piazza San Domenico, where the Mission Congregation and College stand. It was built in 1950 while repairing a large chapel destroyed during the Second World War bombing. The chapel, integrated in the Mission house, had been constructed in 1915, parallel to Via Bosa, with outside side entrance, and consecrated in 1921. The consecration commemorative plaque is visible on the external surface of the apse. The new building, inaugurated on July 13th, 1951, was designed by the architect Augusto Valente – who also drew Cagliari’s maritime station destroyed during the 1943 bombing, and the INCIS public housing in Piazza Galilei), and is characterised by a Neo-Romanesque Pisan style. Above the entrance a lunette mosaic is dedicated to the Patron Saint. The church hip-roof is covered with shingles. The bell tower is placed on the left of the apse, has a square plant, and presents double lancet windows, triple lancet windows and blind arches along its height. The church has a Latin cross plan. When entering the church, the worshipper is led to look at the altar, the most significant part of the building as it symbolically represents the heart of Christ on the cross. Its stylistic simplicity and dimension on a human scale invite worshippers to spiritual meditation. It has three naves, the central one being taller and larger than the aisles separated by composite order columns. The roof is built with wood trusses. The floor is realised with large marble chip tiles and a lozenge-shaped design. The natural lighting inside the church is given by the oculus on the façade, by the lateral single-lancet windows, by those inserted in the apse and by the triple-lancet windows located at the ends of the transept. The wooden confessionals, set along the aisles, still show the lozenge pattern.
