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Church of Saint Anne the Mercy
Church of Saint Anne the Mercy
Chiesa di Sant'Anna la Misericordia (in Italian)
	Façade of the church
Religion
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Province	Archdiocese of Palermo
Rite	Roman Rite
Location
Location	Palermo, Italy
Geographic coordinates	38°06′55″N 13°21′55″E / 38.11528°N 13.36528°E
Architecture
Architect(s)	Mariano Smiriglio, Giovanni Biagio Amico
Style	Baroque, Renaissance
Groundbreaking	1606
Completed	1632
Website
	Official site

The Church of Saint Anne the Mercy (Italian: Chiesa di Sant'Anna la Misericordia or simply Sant'Anna) is a Baroque church of Palermo. It is located in the area of the ancient market of Lattarini, in the quarter of the Kalsa, within the historic centre of Palermo. The church is kept by the Third Order Regular of St. Francis of Penance.

History

The complex of Sant'Anna, including the church and a convent, was built in a zone formerly occupied by an unhealthy inlet, circumscribed by cliffs and filled by alluvial deposits of the former Kemonia river, which dried up a four centuries ago. In the period of the Sicilian Vespers the area housed the residence of Joanne De Saint Remy, collaborator of Charles of Anjou.^[1]

In the 16th century, a chapel dedicated to Our Lady Of Pity is recorded in the so-called “Contrada della Misericordia”. In this chapel Tommaso de Vigilia painted a fresco of the Pietà. Over time the popular devotion to this icon increased.^[1] In 1596 a structure located near the chapel and used as granary was converted into a place of worship.^[1] The fresco was hung in this new temple. In 1597 the convent was built.^[1]

Since the chapel was too small for the liturgical needs, the authorities of Palermo decided to enlarge the building with patronage from the noble families and the community. The architectural project was made by the senatorial architect Mariano Smiriglio. On 26 October 1606 the groundbreaking was launched.^[1] The church was completed in 1632 and consecrated on 13 November 1639 by the bishop of Agrigento Francesco Traina.^[1] The temple was dedicated to Saint Anne, mother of Mary, becoming known as Sant'Anna la Misericordia.

Over the centuries the church was damaged on several occasions by earthquakes. In 1726, the earthquake of Terrasini toppled the façade. The current baroque façade was designed by Giovanni Biagio Amico.

After the unification of Italy, the church and the convent were confiscated by the state. For several years the complex was used as granary. In 1925 the church and a portion of the convent returned into the possession of the friars. Today the former convent is part of the Galleria d'Arte Moderna Palermo, a museum of Italian art from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Art

Paintings

Oil on canvas:

Annunciation of Saint Anne, Elia Interguglielmi
Saint Anne teaching Mary, Elia Interguglielmi
Saint Nicholas in Glory, Elia Interguglielmi
Holy Family with Saint Anne and Saint Joachim, Melchiorre Barresi
Blessed William of Scicli, Leonardo Bazzano
Saint Francis and Saint Elizabeth, Leonardo Bazzano
Saint Rosalia praying over the city, Vincenzo La Barbera
Virgin appearing to Saint Diego, Filippo Tancredi
Immaculate Conception, Guilliam Walsgart
Our Lady Refuge of Sinners, unknown author

Frescoes:

Our Lady Of Pity, Tommaso de Vigilia
Ascension of Jesus, Vito D'Anna
Assumption of the Virgin, Filippo Tancredi
Madonna and Saint Simon Stock, Filippo Tancredi
Elizabeth of Hungary and Saint Louis of France, unknown author

Sculptures

High reliefs:

Pietà, Lorenzo Marabitti

Statues:

The statues of the facade were drawn by Giacomo Serpotta and sculpted by Giacomo Pennino and Lorenzo Marabitti. They represent the saints Joseph, Elizabeth, Anne, Joachim, Louis and Anthony of Padua. Other statues are located inside the church.