Chiesa di Santa Maria di Piazza

Chiesa di Santa Maria di Piazza presents a sober neoclassical façade and an interior shaped largely by Bernardo Antonio Vittone. Medieval records mention the church as sancta maria de platea. Vittone created an elongated elliptical nave, lunettes in the vault, and a dome that directs daylight towards the altar. Oculi and windows puncture the folded dome. Their light reaches the apse, while the high altar once held an Assumption attributed to Pietro Francesco Guala. Barnaba Panizza designed the restrained façade in the nineteenth century. Wartime bombardments caused heavy damage, including the destruction of the main cupola, and postwar restoration rebuilt key parts. Restoration addressed the presbytery, façade, and bell tower. The Sacramentini care for the church and connect its architectural setting with Eucharistic adoration and vigils. The building remains an active living sanctuary. Its curved interior gives light a visible role, as the dome and windows guide attention towards the high altar. The church joins medieval memory with eighteenth-century design.