Pittori e Scultori per la «insigne» Collegiata: il Sei e Settecento

The liturgical changes and artistic renovations initi- ated in the parish church in the final decades of the 16th century continued throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. The 17th century opened with the arrival, for the altar of Saint Francis of Assisi, of the altarpiece by Camillo Procaccini, echoing late-Mannerist cul- ture. The Baroque turn is evident in the chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary, where the Silva family worked on the sculptural decoration and Giampietro Lironi created the statue of the Immaculate Conception. The 18th century began with works in the chapel formerly dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian, re-dedicated to the Crucifix: here the Silva team collaborated with the painter Pietro Bianchi, known as “il Bustino,” later joined by Carlo Innocenzo Carloni. At the same time, the presbytery was renovated with a new marble high altar and frescoes by Francesco Antonio Giorgioli. The Rococo shift can be perceived in the frescoes of the first bay of the presbytery, attributed to the Scotti of Laino, and in the stucco decoration of the other side altars, two of which were enriched with canvases by Giuseppe Antonio Petrini.