Chapel of the Crucifix

Conservation of the 15th-century chapel built on a boulder wedged in a cleft of the rock, high above the sea.

The place

The Chapel of the Crucifix belongs to the Sanctuary of the Holy Trinity, known as the Montagna Spaccata (“split mountain”), founded shortly before the year 1000 by Benedictine monks on the Monte Orlando promontory, today part of the Riviera di Ulisse Regional Park. In 1434 a huge boulder broke away from the cliff and became wedged in the cleft: a small circular chapel was built on top of it, overlooking the drop.

The interior is articulated by four semicircular niches and covered by a round dome with a lantern. The two-tone stone floor still holds the tombstone of Pietro Enrico di Pramperio, governor of Gaeta, who died in 1721. The building is protected under Italian heritage law (Legislative Decree 42/2004).

The project

Preceded by historical research and stratigraphic analysis, the conservation work gave the chapel back a coherent architectural character, altered over time by repeated modifications. Plasters and stucco were restored, incompatible additions removed and the rainwater drainage—the main cause of the detachments—was redesigned.

Inside, the project recovers and reinterprets elements of the earlier historic phase: the openings beside the altar once again look out onto the sea and the cliff, while new iron window frames follow the 18th-century pattern with the oval and the French window. The outdoor paving, balustrade and lighting were also revised, and a glass panel now protects the tombstone.