Church of San Michele de Castirla en Haute-corse

Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of San Michele de Castirla, classified as a historical monument, is a religious building of pre-Roman origin dating from the 12th and 15th centuries. It is characterized by a long rectangular plan of a semicircular bedside facing east, typical of medieval buildings. His apse, vaulted in cul-de-four, houses 15th-century frescoes depicting Christ in majesty surrounded by the Tetramorph, as well as the twelve apostles and an Annunciation. These paintings, restored in 2011, bear witness to Corsican sacred art of the Genoese era.

Castirla, a commune of the Talcini microregion in Upper Corsica, was historically an oppidum of the Talcini piève, mentioned from ancient times by Ptolemy as Talcinum. The area, populated by the Licnini, was later dominated by the Amondaschi in the High Middle Ages, then integrated into the territories of the Marquis of Massa in the 11th century. The church, located in the communal cemetery, reflects this turbulent history, marked by genoese influences and a strategic position between Niolo and Giussani.

The nearby Genoese bridge, known as Pont du Diable (15th century), and the Ponte Castirla hydroelectric power plant underline the historic and economic importance of this site. The frescoes of San Michele, among the oldest in Corsica, as well as its classified furniture (such as the painting Saint Michel terrating the dragon), make it a jewel of island heritage. The 2011 restoration preserved this unique testimony of Corsican medieval art, in a mountainous environment marked by the gorges of the Scala di Santa Regina and the forest of Corscia.

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