Tolentino reopens Cappellone of San Nicola after earthquake restoration

The Cappellone of the Basilica of San Nicola in Tolentino has officially reopened to the public following a decade of closure. The reopening marks the completion of restoration and consolidation work necessitated by the 2016 earthquake.

Recent efforts focused on the building's pictorial apparatus, including the removal of temporary protective inserts, the consolidation of detached sections, and the restoration of the original colors of the significant 14th-century fresco cycles. The ceremony was attended by regional and local officials, including Marche President Francesco Acquaroli and the Bishop of Macerata and Tolentino, Monsignor Nazzareno Marconi.

Additionally, in Faicchio, a commemorative plaque was inaugurated at the Church of San Francesco to honor the victims of a Nazi massacre that occurred in October 1943. The initiative, involving the Sannio Telesino Historical Institute and US academic partners, links the site to the ‘Thunderbirds Trail,’ a historical route tracing the movements of the US 45th Infantry Division during World War II.