Basilica of the Holy House

The Basilica of the Holy House is a Catholic place of pilgrimage located in the Italian municipality of Loreto. It was built around the house where, according to tradition, the Archangel Gabriel announced the divine maternity to the Virgin Mary and where the Holy Family lived in Nazareth. The house was originally located in the Holy Land, but faced with the advance of the Muslim troops, the Christians feared that it would be destroyed. Thus, a member of the powerful Angeli family (governors of Epirus) financed the move of the house to what is now Croatia in 1291. Two years later it was transported to Ancona, and on December 10, 1294, it arrived in the town of Loreto. The basilica itself, designed by Bramante, was built around the small house of Nazareth during the Renaissance.

About this building

Key Features

  • Architecture
  • Monuments
  • Interior features
  • Famous people or stories

Visitors information

  • Bus stop within 100m
  • Car park at the building
  • Café within 500m

Other nearby buildings

Wikimedia Commons/Parsifall

Osimo Cathedral

The Cathedral of Osimo was erected in the 8th century on the site of a former pagan temple dedicated to the Greek mythological figures Asclepius and Hygieia. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Leopard, the first bishop of the city (5th century). The cathedral is in the Romano-Gothic style and is made of white stone.

Wikimedia Commons/18Federico Olivo17

Macerata Cathedral

The cathedral of Macerata has been known since the 10th century. Before the construction of the present cathedral, there was a small rural church dedicated to San Giuliano, built in 1022. Between the 14th and 15th centuries, a second building was erected next to the church, completed in 1478 with the construction of the bell tower, still visible today, in Flamboyant Gothic style. The two existing buildings were united to form a single neoclassical cathedral in 1771.