 Since I was a child, Assisi has been a place that I visited several times, as an adult I returned in 2013 and I told the story in my post called precisely Assisi. In 2022 I returned to Umbria with my family and staying in Santa Maria degli Angeli, we visited many places in Umbria of which Assisi was almost a constant. In this post rather than talking about the days spent there, I want to talk mainly about the visits inside the Basilica of San Francesco d’Assisi and the Basilica of Santa Chiara, two places that I had only seen from the outside during my last visit in 2013. Unfortunately, the Basilica of San Francesco was the victim of a powerful earthquake in 1997 that caused the vault to collapse in two places with the consequent loss of very important frescoes. I remember that after the end of the restoration this delicate process had been much vaunted and publicized and while in 2013 I did not want to see this work, in 2022 I returned mainly with this goal. In 2013 I arrived in Assisi from the part near the Basilica of Santa Chiara and only after walking around the whole city I arrived at the Basilica of San Francesco. The last time instead I did the opposite and opting for this solution, together with my family we in a certain sense climbed Assisi. However, the view of the basilica from the bottom upwards gave it an even more important aspect and characterized by the portico with arches that preceded the basilica and was like a very scenic antechamber. The basilica, developing on a difference in level, had two entrances that distinguished it into lower and upper, in reality there were more than two levels because there was also an underground level below the lower part. My tour started from the lower basilica and I did it at a later time after the end of the mass which I did not attend. The lower part was a large area where the ceiling was made up of cross vaults, in the final part there was the apse where above it was full of frescoes. To tell the truth, the silence imposed in an ironclad way and if I remember correctly the impossibility of taking photos, were two things that I did not like. I like to observe and study things in complete freedom and in addition to these two details, the area was packed with people. Despite this, I still took some photos, mainly of the frescoes above the apse and a staircase that led outside. It is obvious that in that context I was not able to make live studies, but looking at the frescoes calmly I saw some strange things as often happens in these types of works. In one fresco there was Francis as a guru sitting on a throne with people who idolized him, in another he had his hand on a skeleton shoulder, something that left room for various interpretations. In other frescoes in addition to figures such as those of Jesus or angels, there were strange men with tails, or prehensile feet but what was striking was the torment of the people. I noticed other details such as a tower that was collapsing or a person who was throwing himself from another tower, in general it did not seem to me that there was harmony. The message was as if there was a demon in the area that had to be chased away. Downstairs there were rooms where the robes of Saint Francis were displayed along with a large parchment, all these things had the appearance of being very old. Also on the lower floor there was the crypt with the remains of Saint Francis. The tomb stood on an altar in an area completely built of stone; very little of it could be seen and except for the plaque with the name of the saint, the place was very dark with only some lights illuminating the wall. That area marked by silence and forced meditation, did not reflect my personality and although I am not a suggestible type, I preferred to leave that area set up deliberately in a dark way and reach an upper courtyard that overlooked the cloister. As I have said in other posts, I have always loved the geometry of places like cloisters because they calm me down and push me to reflect much more authentically than those imposed by forced silence like that of the lower basilica. From the cloister I finally reached the upper basilica, the one most affected by the damage caused by the famous earthquake. From a structural point of view, it respected the construction with cross vaults of the lower basilica, only compared to it it was brighter as well as wider and taller. Light also entered from the high windows but in general the sensation was totally different also because there was no forced silence. I followed an L-shaped route almost always with my head up, photographing the frescoes or what remained of them. Fortunately, many were intact but most resembled a grotesque imitation of Picasso's works. In some places what was left were forms rather than actual figures and I believe that the restoration, where it was done with the addition of colors, only made the situation worse. To be honest I was a little disappointed to see those frescoes both because I am always in bad faith and I believe that certain extreme events are provoked on purpose to eliminate in this case symbols that today perhaps can be interpreted more precisely, and because I do not believe that something that has been totally destroyed can be restored. In some places they had left only the plaster and parts of frescoes, I believe that it was a better solution, more real that at the same time made you reflect on the concept of creation and destruction. The upper basilica itself was very beautiful also because along the walls the frescoes were intact and very colorful but raising your head towards the ceiling there was only disappointment for the loss of something that no recovery technique can restore.    Lower Basilica     Saint Francis Tomb   Upper Basilica    Santa Maria degli Angeli  As I said before, the Basilica of San Francesco and the Basilica of Santa Chiara were the two opposites of the city, between them there were two places that I had never seen and one that I always liked to go back to look at and photograph. The Temple of Minerva was one of the places that I liked to see again the most, since the first time I saw it, it struck me because it was visibly of another style and era. The temple is very well preserved with six columns with Corinthian capitals and a still very solid trabeation, however the erosion is evident both on the capitals and along the columns. This detail that is certainly noticeable if you observe the structure carefully, is however perceived unconsciously. Everything around the Temple of Minerva is ancient but the temple itself is much more so both from a structural point of view and in terms of aesthetic conditions. In my opinion, anyone who passes in front of the temple notices something on an unconscious level without investigating and bringing the detail to a conscious level. Then there are the "transformations" that confuse things; the temple was in fact converted into a Catholic church and visiting it inside you can admire a beautiful golden altar. Although beautiful from a spiritual and aesthetic point of view, the idea of converting a structure from another time into a religious place is in my opinion a horrible thing, however it helps to confuse the minds of the masses who have always been told a historical science fiction narrative. The Temple of Minerva is one of the examples of how you can deceive the minds of individuals by putting in front of them evidence of a past never investigated correctly and make it pass as normal; there are many examples of these also in Rome. Another place I had only seen briefly was the “Plateola Sancti Francisci Parvuli”, a very old chapel built where it is assumed that Saint Francis was born. I like the place because from the upper part you enter through an arch while from the lower part, along an uphill road flanked by a stone wall-building. Both the exterior and the interior of the chapel are extremely small, what struck me about the interior was the feeling of antiquity, from the walls to the floor, I had the feeling of something very old and equally worn. Also between the two basilicas was the Chiesa Nuova, this was built where once there was the birthplace of Saint Francis. The church stood on a small asymmetrical square and was sand-colored with a beautiful dome, the small size of the church in my opinion was an added value. At the entrance there was a plaque reporting a speech by Saint Francis focused on the place of growth and his youth. The Chiesa Nuova, another quite popular tourist attraction, was however an intimate place also because it was very small and circumscribed, I did not visit the interior even if it seems that some parts of the original house of San Francesco are preserved there. The exploration of Assisi in 2022 had as its final part what had been the initial part years before, that is, the view of the Basilica of Santa Chiara and the large square of the same name where it overlooked. Even in this case, the aesthetics of the basilica were from ancient times, however it always seemed strange to me, imperfect with those buttresses that were like giant ears. I have never found harmony and symmetry in the basilica and this has led me to never observe it with interest and correctness, only now do I understand that in reality it should be studied precisely for its aesthetic strangeness. Another factor that has always distracted me in the place was the square, always populated by people and where the noise left no room for abstract thought. I have never had the impression of being alone in front of a mysterious work, as has happened to me many other times, rather also because of the surrounding confusion, I have always perceived the discomfort of the lack of symmetry. During my last visit I had the patience to get in line and also visit the interior of which I have no great memories or particular impressions. Even the interior of the Basilica of Santa Chiara had cross vaults with many frescoes, many of which unfortunately were ruined. In addition to a large cross with a Christ in a plastic pose, what struck me most about the interior were the marble parts; there were works such as arches and coverings that were truly beautiful and with a solid and eternal appearance. Surely even the visit inside brought within me the bad mood of a structure that for aesthetic reasons has never won me over but that I will surely visit in the future with a different attitude, totally disconnecting from the noise of the mass that always surrounds that place. What you can enjoy from Piazza di Santa Chiara, however, is the view of both the valley and the city of Assisi, a view that I chose as the cover photo for this post. Even though it is very far from where I live, Assisi represents a familiar and childhood place for me, a place that is always very close to me in my mind. This phenomenon is linked to the fact that having visited the city when I was very young, many of the memories have been stored in my mind indelibly together with other places of my real childhood. This process is very beautiful and also concerns other places where I have not yet managed to return and understand if the effect will be the same. In a certain sense I was lucky enough to visit places when Italy was not yet an overpopulated country and above all these sacred places were destinations for a few also for a cultural reason where money was not spent on traveling. Today unfortunately everything has changed and people do things only to keep up with others or because they are driven by materialistic marketing where the personality of the individual gives way to polarization. When I speak of the masses in a negative way it is because most of them visit places of worship for selfish reasons. Rather than working on spirituality in this material life, they hope that the veneration of places of worship will give them eternal life but the material one because in reality it is the only one they know. Added to this is a more modern materialism of also having to show others what they do as if to feel superior by stimulating the envy of others, this is seen in the voracious photos they take with their phones; the anti-photo par excellence, the one created to be shown to others and not conceived as a personal memory that should be shown only to loved ones.   Temple of Minerva    Plateola Sancti Francisci Parvuli   Basilica of Santa Chiara    Chiesa Nuova    A.M.
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