Get Around Italy
Image default

Santa Margherita di Antiochia



Santa Margherita di Antiochia, Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Italy

The town of Vernazza has a gorgeous waterfront, which is framed by this beautiful small and yet historically significant church called Santa Margherita di Antiochia. It has been constructed in a manner that reflects the Gothic-Ligurian style. The temple was constructed in 1318 and it’s one of the major tourist attractions in the Cinque Terre region. The church’s 40-meter octagonal tower seems almost to touch the town’s skyline.

This parish church has been dedicated to the municipality’s patron saint and is considered to be an extremely holy place of worship, especially by the local resident. Standing on a cliff, the church of Santa Margherita di Antiochia was built by the famous Antelami Masters and overlooks the tiny port of Vernazza.

According to popular legend, the locals saw the bones of Santa Margherita’s hand near the seashore inside a wooden box. During that time period, the residents living in that locality made up their minds to construct a small church to show their reverence to Santa where the neighborhood inlet now stands. Surprisingly though, due to rough sea waves and heavy storm, the relic vanished all of a sudden. Astonishingly, it reappeared after a few days on the same site. Such incidents made the residents of the town of Vernazza believe in the purity of the place.

There are a few things that visitors should keep in mind while visiting this church. For instance, they should not take any photograph without taking permission first. Also, peace should be maintained while they are within the church and find out from the authority whether donations are allowed or not.

How to get there:

You can either of these bus numbers to reach this tourist attraction: 98, 82, 7/8

Ticket prices:

Entry is free.

Official website:

https://www.lecinqueterre.org/arte/vernaantiochia.php

Related posts

Convento dei Cappuccini

Doge’s Palace

Piazza Navona