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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The church of Saint-Albert de Calvese, located in Sollacaro in South Corsica, is placed under the name of Saint-Albert the Great at the end of the sixteenth century. Originally, it is a small rectangular structure, facing to the north, with a unique nave and dirt floor, as described by Bishop Mascardi in 1587 during his pastoral visit. The walls, uncoated and without windows, have two doors, and the roof is partially covered with tiles. This first building reflects the simplicity of the Corsican rural churches of the time, marked by obvious material poverty.

In the 18th century, the church was rebuilt and enlarged according to the canons of Corsican Baroque art, with a vaulted nave with glasses and a side chapel dedicated to Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire. The latter houses rose-shaped frescoes dating from 1759, while the painted decorations, attributed to artist Raffali, illustrate the artistic care given to rural religious buildings. In 1816, a bell tower behind the wall was built, later completed by an ogival dome in the 20th century. These successive transformations bear witness to the architectural and liturgical evolution of the building.

Historical sources, such as the pastoral visit reports of 1587 and 1686, highlight the modest state of the church, linked to the poverty of the place. In 1686, Don Pellegrino Gervasi noted that the church, unconsecrated, was an annex to the parish of Sollacaro, with a soil deformed by the archa (a funeral structure). These documents also reveal the importance of religious buildings in the rural community organization, despite limited resources. The church was finally listed as a Historic Monument in 2012 for its heritage value.

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