Descrizione
The church of S. Giorgio is the most important and successful example of baroque in Salerno. A new church was built on the original one dating back to the X century, and during the XVI century it underwent some changes: a marble portal dating back to 1560 remains of this phase and was placed on the facade of the present church in the XIX century. The latter was built between 1674 and 1675. It has a single nave, covered by barrel vaults with reinforcing nails, side chapels, a rectangular transept surmounted by a dome and a square space behind the altar. The interior has numerous frescoes: "Virgin and Child with Saints", by Andrea Sabatini of 1523 (second chapel on the right). The most important are those of the vault and of the presbytery by Angelo Solimena: in the transept on the right "La Crocifissione" and on the left "San Benedetto" in the left aisle, "Il Martirio delle Sante Tecla, Archelaa e Susanna" of 1680; the "San Michele" and other paintings (along the walls) by Solimena's very young son, Francesco. Giacinto de Populi also worked there with "The Holy Family" and Michele Ricciardi with the fresco in the sacristy representing the "Virgin giving the chasuble to Saint Idelfonso". In the years 1694-1695, the Vietrese craftsman Nicola d'Acunto worked to gild the stuccoes of the church. The high altar is attributed to the Carraresi masters Pietro and Bartolomeo Ghetti.