Conference paper

Passuello, Angelo:

Romanesque architecture in Verona and its relationships with Venice and Northern Europe: the abbey of San Pietro in Villanova near San Bonifacio (Verona)

The analysis concerns the Medieval abbey of San Pietro in Villanova near San Bonifacio (Verona). The current appearance of the Church is the result of a series of interventions promoted by the Olivetan monks, starting from the mid-16th century. The Benedictine monastery, however, was founded in the first decade of the 12th century by the Counts of San Bonifacio and became a strategic bridgehead in a centre that was traditionally loyal to the imperial cause and hostile to the papacy.

Using historical sources, material evidence and constant stylistic comparison with other similar surviving buildings (of the kind), the author will recreate the architectural sequence of the complex, including a detailed timeline of the various building phases of construction during the Medieval period. The aim of this research is to improve our knowledge of a historic building thus far neglected by scholars, which nonetheless deserves to be included in the fervent critical debate on Romanesque architecture in Verona and the North of Italy.

The adoption of an alternating system (column, pilaster: ABAB) and the use of the faltkapitelle confirms that the Verona territory played a central role in the reception and retransmission of the influences coming from Venice and from the German regions, which made their way through the main communication routes among East, West and North Europe.


Dr. Angelo Passuello was born in Verona (Italy) in 1986; he is currently studying for a PhD in Medieval Architecture at the Ca’ Foscari University in Venice. In 2008 he achieved a Bachelor’s Degree in Cultural Assets at the University of Verona; in the same University, during the Academic Year 2009/2010, he attained a Master’s Degree in Art-Studies. His graduation thesis, L’abbazia di San Pietro apostolo a Villanova presso San Bonifacio (Vr) (supervisor: prof. Fabio Coden), gains a national award and a special mention in the year 2013. From 2012 to 2013, he was a scholar at the Postgraduate Specialisation School in Historical and Artistic Heritage at the University of Padua (supervisor: prof. Giovanna Valenzano). His research interests are Medieval architecture and sculpture of Northern Italy, paying particular attention to the case of Verona. He participated in national and international meetings, and his scientific articles are published in important reviews, such as «Arte Cristiana» and «Benedictina».