Spoleto - San Pietro extra moenia

The site was once a (probably Roman) cemetery. A church, dedicated to St. Peter existed here already within the 5th century. This was erected by the local Bishop Achilleo, to house the chains that supposedly once had bound St. Peter. The chains are meanwhile back in Rome and can be seen in San Pietro in Vincoli.

"Extra moenia" means, that the church was outside the city walls (= extra muros).

The present church was built between the 12th and 13th centuries. It was severely damaged by the Ghibellines in 1329, but was rebuilt in the following decades. The interior was transformed at the end of the seventeenth century - and so by now is Baroque.

The facade, decorated with all kinds of reliefs, still is in a good condition, though, due to the isolated location, it is covered with graffiti.

I had hoped to find some traces from the from French soldiers, who marched through here with Napoleon´s armee, but there are one few carved graffiti. Most graffiti here are done with copying pencils. These pencils were very popular end of the 19th century.