Pieve di Cella

The Pieve di Cella rises in the valley of the Recchio torrent between Medesano and Varano Marchesi.

The building is an example of sober baroque in which classical elements are inserted. Externally, the façade finished by a triangular tympanum with a small pronaos, is placed before the central room ending in an original dome. It is conceivable that the pronaos was later added to the original core. Next to it, on the right side, stands the slender bell tower.

Inside, the hall is characterized by a large oval surmounted by an original dome, broken in its linearity by two niches on each side, and concluded by a square apse raised above the nave.

The apse and the hall have domes: that of the apse is spherical, while that of the hall has a more daring solution, in line with the Baroque style.

Outside, the covering is in tiles. In the nave the floor is in two-tone marble grit, green and yellow. In the apse there are grey marble slabs. The interior is frescoed, mainly with geometric patterns. In the apse there are also crosses and Easter lambs.

It is not known with certainty whether the building we see today, rebuilt in the eighteenth century in typical baroque style as was customary at the time, is located in the same place as the original one.

The church is dedicated to both San Lorenzo and Santa Maria Assunta.