San Pietro Church in Molfetta unveils restored 18th-century altar painting

The restored main altar painting of the San Pietro church in Molfetta will be presented on August 29. The 18th-century canvas depicts the Madonna and Child with Saint Benedict, Saint Scholastica, Saint Peter, and Saint Paul.

Created by Nicola Porta, a student of Corrado Giaquinto, the restoration has helped confirm the work's attribution by highlighting compositional models consistent with Porta's other paintings in Bari and Molfetta. The project was funded through a fundraising campaign organized by the Fondazione Museo Diocesano and musical initiatives under the ‘Germogli. Talee musicali’ project, held in memory of the late Don Gino Samarelli.

The presentation event will include art historian Francesco De Nicolo and restorer Annamaria Chiapparino. The painting returns to its position alongside a restored oval depicting Saint John the Baptist.