CHURCHES

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  PIEVE DI ROFFENO

  The parish Church of Roffeno is one of the oldest and most famous in the Bolognese Appennine Mountains. The structure was rebuilt from its foundations in 1155 and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin and Saints Peter and John, a typical configuration for small Medieval churches. The aspe has been called one of the most beautiful in our diocese. Built in 1155 by the Tuscan master builders, the Comacinis, they left their mark in the form of a Florentine lily carved into a sandstone block on the western side of the aspe itself. Inside we find a baptismal font, most likely of 7th century Lombard origin, which belonged to the church which stood on the site before 1155. The sandstone basin is decorated with a crown of dolphins, holding one another by the tail. Baptism is the sacrament which connects Christians with Christ, who was symbolized by a dolphin in the early days of Christianity. There are two opposing theories regarding the date of the font. Some claim it is clearly the work of the Lombards (7th century), dating the church to the same period, while others attribute it to the 11th or 12th century. The accounts of its function are likewise discordant: while currently being used as a baptismal font, its original function must have been entirely different, as in those days baptism was carried out by total immersion. A recent hypothesis suggests that it was used to accept offerings, similarly to \"Pilate's Basin\" found in the St. Stephen's church complex in Bologna.

  
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  THE CHAPEL OF MADONNA DEL BOSCO

  The Chapel of Madonna del Bosco, or Our Lady of the Wood, was built in the early seventeenth century along one of the oldest Apennine passageways; its function was probably that of a “Hostel” where travellers could rest and find refreshment. The origins of the sanctuary can be traced back to a precise date: 1630, the year of the great plague that hit Italy. It is for this reason that the small sanctuary was dedicated to the Saints Sebastian and Rocco, protectors of this terrible curse. The original dedication gave way to a new devotion which was spread thanks to the works of Carmelite fathers in the late seventeenth century: worship of the Madonna del Monte Carmel, or Our Lady of Mount Carmel, also known as the Madonna del Carmine. This title was added to the original and then replaced it completely. The attribute “del Bosco”, or \"of the Wood” was later added to this title, which was kept for centuries, but there was also “Ridicanè” from the name of the brook that is still given this name. From the report by Cardinal Boncompagni upon his visit to the church in 1692 we learn that it was built, like most mountain chapels, “ad modum capannae” that is to say, with a pitched roof and a rectangular plan. A statue of the Madonna was worshipped here. Standing in a niche, with a silver crown, it was carried in a procession during the holiday on the 16th of July. Leaning against the Pliocene sandstones, Calindri reveals the presence of “two cramped cells, partially walled and partially dug into the stone” to be used by a hermit who looked after the chapel.