The original complex began as the monastery of the Friars Minor of the Osservanza, located outside Porta Montanara. The current church reflects the restoration carried out between 1828 and 1859 by architects Pietro Tomba and Costantino Galli, who reinterpreted the structure in a Neoclassical style following the Napoleonic suppressions.
In the 15th century, the church was chosen as a burial site by Astorgio Manfredi and Bishop Federico. From the Manfredi chapel comes the wooden sculpture of San Girolamo, attributed to Donatello, now preserved in the Pinacoteca Comunale of Faenza.
In 1858, Costantino Galli designed the imposing façade with a semicircular portico leading to the cemetery, giving the complex monumental scale and harmonizing its different sections.
The Osservanza Cemetery of Faenza has recently been recognized by the Emilia-Romagna Region as a "Monumental and Historic Cemetery of Emilia-Romagna".
Notable tombs include the Melandri tomb, a gres work by Lucio Fontana, the tomb of Rosa Laghi, and the medallion for Antonio Berti’s sepulcher by sculptor Domenico Rambelli.
Address: Viale Marconi – Via Firenze, annexed to the Osservanza Cemetery
Visitor Information: The church is an integral part of the cemetery and open every day. If closed, permission can be requested at the cemetery offices nearby. As the church is outside the historical center, it is accessible by car (ample parking) or on foot via a pleasant walk along Viale Marconi.
Explanation: This is the ancient Manfredi church dedicated to San Girolamo, originally part of the Santa Perpetua convent. The 15th-century features were largely masked by Pietro Tomba’s 1828 renovations, while the façade with its large Neoclassical pronaos within a hemicycle portico was designed by Costantino Galli in 1858–59. These works, extended to the adjacent convent and cloisters, created the large Osservanza cemetery complex, the only one of its kind in Faenza. Tomba’s church represents an exemplary image of early 19th-century Faentine funerary and sculptural art, featuring stucco statues by Ballanti Graziani (including Franciscan saints and tombs such as that of Cavina designed by Felice Giani). On the left side, a 15th-century wooden crucifix is preserved, attributed to a Northern European sculptor, possibly German, related to the Duomo’s crucifix group.
