SAINT ANNA OF THE GREEKS
Anyone who goes to visit the beautiful diocesan museum of Ancona has the opportunity to admire a notable collection of precious finds and works ranging from the origins of Christianity (Early Christian period) in the first rooms, up to the precious Flemish tapestries of the painter Pieter Paul Rubens (1577 -1640) located in the last room of the museum. The route includes, among other things, evidence of the Romanesque and Gothic periods, artefacts dating back to humanism and the Renaissance, collections of coins, medals and fabrics, sculptures and an art gallery full of precious canvases of sacred subjects created over the centuries . Essentially 20 centuries of history of the Christian civilization of the city of Ancona are documented in this place.
The structure, inaugurated in 1834, was originally intended to house only materials from the restoration of the Cathedral of San Ciriaco. Subsequently, however, due to the destruction of various churches in the city due to the bombings of World War II, the museum was entrusted with everything that was gradually recovered from the ruins and which as a whole turned out to be a splendid heritage of religious artefacts, of works of art of ancient precious objects. Among these, some late-Byzantine icons (seven to be exact) of the Italian-Cretan school of the XNUMXth century stand out for their uniqueness,
(Transfiguration of Jesus Christ on Mount Tabor, Italian Cretan School, 16th century)
coming from the iconostasis of the Church of Sant'Anna dei Greci, one of the ancient churches of Ancona which suffered the fate described above. The explanatory table found in the room clarifies, among other things, that this religious building was donated in 1380 by the Ancona curia to the local Greek community of the city, so that they could practice their worship there. Reading this brief information, one immediately wonders how and why in a city that at the time lived immersed in a religious context characterized by the Roman Catholic rite, there existed a church explicitly dedicated to the Greeks.
History tells us that the church, later called Sant'Anna dei Greci, was not born with this name, nor was it reserved for the Greek Orthodox community. The original church, built between the 12th and 13th centuries, was called Santa Maria in Porta Cipriana, it was a Catholic church of the Roman rite and was located in via San Bartolomeo (now via Birarelli), a road that from San Ciriaco led to Porta Cipriana , an important access to the city.
The facts that lead to the donation of this building to the Greek community began in the year 1380 when the papal legate for the East, Paolo Tagaris Paleologo, donated precious sacred remains to the Greek citizens of Ancona, including the right foot of St. Anna, mother of Mary. The sacred relics, with the authorization of the bishop, were placed in Santa Maria in Porta Cipriana. From this circumstance arose a first profound bond between the Greeks of Ancona and the church in question, which evidently consolidated over time, so much so that a few centuries later, exactly in 1524, Pope Clement VII, with a specific bull, assigned Santa Maria in porta Cipriana to the Greek community, giving the faithful the prerogative to celebrate religious functions according to their rite and, at the same time, decreed its exemption from the jurisdiction of the bishop of Ancona. Thus the church was renamed Sant'Anna dei Greci and the tomb of Alessio Lascaris, of the Paleologhi family, was placed inside.
Once it passed to Greek Orthodox worship, the building had to undergo some modifications in order to adapt the environment to the new liturgy. The main altar was modified and an iconostasis was created, i.e. a separation between the choir (i.e. the space reserved for liturgical singing and the clergy) and the naves intended for the faithful. The famous painter Lorenzo Lotto was also commissioned to place three paintings on the walls.
Many years later, in the 18th century, the church underwent further interventions such as the reconstruction of the iconostasis, the pictorial decorations and the reconstruction of the bell tower. The designer and director of the works was the Ancona architect and painter Francesco Maria Ciaffaroni who availed himself of the collaboration of other important artists and skilled craftsmen.
The church of Sant'Anna was for centuries a fundamental point of reference for the lively Greek community of Ancona.
The relationships between this population and the city, as is known, date back to its foundation in 387 BC by the Syracusan Greeks of the Doric lineage and for about two centuries Ancona remained a Greek colony.
It is obvious, therefore, that the Greek people considered the Doric city as a natural outlet for their migratory movements. One of the causes, for example, which gave rise to continuous mass movements of Hellenic people towards the Ancona area was the invasion of Greece by the Turks, so much so that in the early years of the 200th century there were around XNUMX families permanently resident in the Doric area. .
This community of migrants, well integrated into the city context, drew its livelihood above all from trade and maritime communications with the East and from carrying out artisanal and commercial activities. The city took advantage of their entrepreneurial spirit, their emancipated civilisation, their advanced culture, becoming over time an important mercantile centre, excelling, in particular, in the purple and wool dyeing industries. This feat made her famous throughout much of the East.
Alongside actual work activities, the Greek community did not neglect works of a philanthropic and humanitarian nature. An association of merchants and artisans, for example, gave life to the Confraternity of Sant'Anna. Closely linked to the church of the same name, its aim was to take care of and assist, with collections of money and food, people in need or to make funds available to them for study and dowries. Not only that. In 1562 the Confraternity, thanks to a bequest from the Greek Alessio Lascaris dei Paleologhi, had a hospital built next to the church for indigent patients. The hospital was then expanded with the money from another bequest, that of Lascaris' wife and thanks to subsequent testamentary provisions, the Ospedaletto della SS was built in 1641. Trinità adjacent to the pre-existing Sant'Anna hospital.
Currently, none of this exists anymore. Everything was destroyed, first of all due to the air bombings, then the post-war reconstruction also left its mark. The apse and the bell tower of the church remained standing, but the rebuilders, despite the contrary opinion of the Diocesan Commission of Sacred Art, have favored demolition over recovery.
Today, in place of the historic church and the ancient hospital we find an anonymous building housing the administrative offices of the INRCA. In front, on the side wall of Palazzo Acciaiuoli, a commemorative plaque is affixed in memory, while a little further down, a small arch is all that remains of Porta Cipriana.
Giovanna Patarca
