Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption

About

The Basilica of Saint Mary of the Assumption (Italian: Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta) is a 14th-century basilica in Alcamo, province of Trapani, Sicily, southern Italy. It is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary assumed into Heaven. Pope Paul VI raised the shrine to the status of Minor Basilica via the Pontifical decree Qui Consideret Quamvis on 13 May 1969. The decree was signed and notarized by Cardinal Luigi Traglia.

The first mother church of Alcamo, positioned on the north side of the quarter of San Vito, was first dedicated to Our Lady Source of Mercy (Santa Maria Fonte della Misericordia, 1200) and then to Our Lady with the Star (Madonna della Stella). This Church is still existing under the name of Santa Maria della Stella, though in a state of abandonment. In 1332, the inhabitants of quarter of San Vito moved near the castle of the Counts of Modica, and for this reason a new mother church was built in the same place where the present one is located and it is dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption. This church opened to worship in 1402, was built in a Catalan-Gothic style with a nave and two side aisles and had a wooden ceiling and side chapels not aligned...