The Basilica of San Giovanni is an ancient place of historical interest, located in Pioppi, in the municipal area of Pratola Serra.
Built around the 7th century, the original building seems to be identified with the Basilica of S. Iohannis de Pratula, mentioned in the account books of 1308-1310 together with other churches of the fiefdom of Serra. It assumed the role of new seat of the Bishops of Abellinum, after the destruction of the city by the Longobard populations, and exercised religi read more
The Basilica of San Giovanni is an ancient place of historical interest, located in Pioppi, in the municipal area of Pratola Serra.
Built around the 7th century, the original building seems to be identified with the Basilica of S. Iohannis de Pratula, mentioned in the account books of 1308-1310 together with other churches of the fiefdom of Serra. It assumed the role of new seat of the Bishops of Abellinum, after the destruction of the city by the Longobard populations, and exercised religious functions at least until the late Middle Ages, as evidenced by the numerous tombs found on the site, dating back to that period and well integrated of prehistoric and Roman terrain. For reasons not yet known, the Basilica lost its importance and underwent a phase of decline which caused it, first, to be abandoned and then to deteriorate, until the discovery of its ruins, which took place in 1981.
From the analysis of what remains of the original architectural layout, the Basilica of San Giovanni must have been based on a highly articulated structure, consisting of a narthex, a large single-apse room, a baptistery and a burial ground, adaptable to the many functions and to the regulation of the religious life of several communities. The large hall with the narthex is made up of a cibarium, schola cantorum, apse and niche and was built in imitation of the halls of the great villas of the Roman world. The baptismal font, made up of four equal arms, has many similarities with that of the early Christian basilica found in the Archaeological Park of Aeclanum.
Furthermore, the funerary furnishings of the Basilica, such as jugs or plates bearing the sign of the cross, recall the Byzantine-Oriental custom of burying the dead, while other gold and silver crosses found on the site show similarities with objects of the same type, found themselves in Benevento, Capua, Pavia and Senise.
Even today, the site bears witness to important and indelible religious and cultural aspects of the late Roman and medieval period. read less
