Church of St. Lawrence

When walking up the Borgo San Rocco in Arsoli towards the square, take Via dello Stiratoio to reach the Church of St. Lawrence.
 
The church dates to before the 16th century and belongs to the group of those rural churches positioned outside the fortress walls, around which villages grew up.
 
In the mid 16th century, the church was the biggest in the town, which prompted the Bishop of Tivoli, Mons. Croce, while on a pastoral visit, to suggest transferring the title of parish church to the Church of St. Lawrence from the Church of the Most Holy Saviour by the castle. From the report of this visit, it also becomes clear that the church Sancti Laurenti extra muros (St. Lawrence outside the walls) was the oldest in the village.
 
In 1579, the church welcomed the assembly to designate the community representative to the Giureconsulto Luca Peto, who edited the Statute published in 1584.
 
The church was restored twice, in 1580 and 1784, both times thanks to the Massimo family. The events are documented by two inscriptions, one inside the church, the other on the façade which also mentions the family's right of patronage.
 
In 1789, trusses and columns were added to the church by the Roman architect Benedetto Piernicoli, who had used them to make the triumphal arch in occasion of Pope Pius VI's stay in the Molette area of the territory.
 
The single chambered interior has a wooden ceiling and the arch and presbytery are decorated with the Massimo family crest, and flowers, garlands and angels holding the martyr's palm and crown. The painting over the main altar depicts the Martyrdom of St. Lawrence.
 
The land around the church, where the Asilo San Filippo was later built, was orginally the cemetary.
 
During WWII, Arsoli became a hospital town from January to June 1944, and the church was temporarily used as a morgue for the prisoners and soldiers who died in the hospital.
 
The church is also used nowadays for the assemblies of the Brotherhood of the Most Holy Trinity.

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