Churches near Monte San Pietrangeli: an itinerary among nature and spirituality

The Marca Fermana, dotted with castles and abbeys, but also with country churches and small villages, offers its visitors a virtually endless number of itineraries to travel among its beauties. Monte San Pietrangeli is the epicenter of one of them; we will start right from here, then, moving away a maximum of a dozen kilometers, to discover five of the beautiful churches that surround the village.

A relaxing and surprising journey awaits us, during which we will learn that these monuments with such different histories, also share many common traits. The Fermo brick, for example, of which entire villages are made, characterizes their style. We will also discover frescoes that have remained hidden for centuries and we will see new glimpses of the wonderful landscapes surrounding the churches, experiencing the thrill of knowing a heritage of immense value.

The first stop on our itinerary takes us to the nearby hamlet of Monte San Pietrangeli, named San Rustico. It is a place surrounded by greenery and very quiet where we will find a beautiful eighteenth-century church surmounted by a small bell tower. The building is entirely made of bricks, sober and austere and with few openings. The entrance is on the façade, decorated with two simple string courses.

To reach San Rustico from the center of Monte San Pietrangeli, we just have travel on provincial road 72 for less than five kilometers. Cycling enthusiasts will have to face the last uphill stretch, but fortunately the church also has a courtyard with some trees to rest in the shade and a small fountain. In the clear days the view of the Sibillini Mountains, however, repays all the effort.

Among the many churches that surround Monte San Pietrangeli, about five kilometers away, there is the Madonna del Buoncuore. This small rural church is particularly important for the life of the village. Originally, in the 17th century, it was built to house a sacred image that was believed to be miraculous, while now it is the site of one of the traditional festivals that are held every year. In September, in fact, this enchanting place comes alive on the occasion of one of the major festivals of Monte San Pietrengeli, the one dedicated to the Madonna del Buoncuore, which includes, in addition to religious rites, stands of local gastronomic products.

The church has been recently renovated, in fact from the outside you can immediately notice the concrete barrel vault that covers only a part of the single nave, while the other half is covered by the gabled roof typical of the churches in the area.
To reach the church of the Madonna del Buoncuore we can simply continue our tour from San Rustico, driving for just over six kilometers on provincial road 72, towards Contrada San Martino.

We continue our itinerary among the churches of Fermo that surround Monte San Pietrangeli to discover a real hidden gem. Let's get to Cerreto di Montegiogio, an evocative place where the small church of Santa Maria delle Grazie is located. It is a building that dates back to 1520, a time when  the local high aristocracy often lived here.

Once again, the façade is sober, with the portal and a simple rose window as the only decorative elements. Inside we can see an older nave with two lateral chapels from the 17th century, but the most fascinating part is the apse, decorated entirely with a complex cycle of rather well-preserved 16th-century frescoes. The work is attributed at least in part to Vincenzo Pagani.
A good idea to reach Cerreto, instead of returning to Monte San Pietrangeli, is to stay on provincial road 72, but drive in the opposite direction. We will thus have the opportunity to cross two other fascinating villages, Torre San Patrizio and Rapagnano.

We now leave Colle Cerreto and, via the provincial road 40, in a few minutes we arrive at Magliano di Tenna, a small village of about one thousand four hundred inhabitants that holds a great treasure.

In the heart of its historic center is the church of San Gregorio Magno. The imposing 13th-century building was built on the ruins of an older church and dominates the others thanks to the mass of the apse and the bell tower. Inside it has 18th-century decorations and furnishings, with a single nave and several altars along the perimeter, where we can admire works by local artists, in particular the Ricci brothers from Fermo.
Another important work preserved here is the chapel frescoed, presumably towards the end of the 15th century, by Vincenzo Pagani.

The last stop on our fascinating itinerary to discover the churches of Fermo takes us to Grottazzolina, an ancient and lively medieval village, five chilometers from Magliano di tenna. Like many villages in this region, just like Monte San Pietrangeli and despite its small size, Grottazzolina also holds many treasures. Here, in fact, are two important churches of the Marca Fermana, that of San Giovanni Battista and that of the SS. Sacramento and the Rosary.

Immediately outside the historic center, however, on what was once the pilgrims' route, there is another hidden gem, the small church of Santa Maria a Piè di Costa. It is a seventeenth-century building that incorporates a chapel from the 1400s, Inside, there's a surprise waiting for us: the chapel is completely frescoed, probably thanx to the work of the artist Giacomo di Nicola da Recanati.

Making this place even more fascinating is the fact that many of its oldest frescoes were discovered only in 2000. Who knows how many other secrets this church could reveal!
Unfortunately, our itinerary ends here, about twelve kilometers from Monte San Pietrangeli which is well connected by provincial roads 72 and 40. However, there are still many churches around Fermo, as well as villages and castles. To keep on travel among its many beauties is certainly an experience not to be missed.