This content was automatically translated. View the original text.
Church of the Star in Albano Laziale: the Virgin Mary and the Cholera Cemetery
In Albano Laziale, the Church of the Stella (St Mary of the Star) stands above the Catacombs of San Senatore and, perhaps, on the site of the previous church from which it took its name. The complex was built around the mid-16th century. Its current layout comes from the renovation in 1687, thanks to funding from the municipality.
The Star and the Savelli Family
The interior is entirely Baroque, featuring a high altar made of 18th-century polychrome marbles and four plaster statues positioned on the dividing wall of the presbytery. The name of the church derives from a detail in the painting above the high altar: the Madonna and Child surrounded by angels features a star on her mantle. The coat of arms of the Princes of Savelli—lords of Albano for many centuries—stands out, and remains clearly visible on the back wall.
The 1833 Cemetery
Adjacent to the church lies the historical municipal cemetery. On the original entrance, the inscription marking its year of consecration, 1833, is still visible. Its nickname, the "Cholera Cemetery", speaks for itself: 19th-century cemeteries were often opened in response to epidemics, requiring the deceased to be buried outside inhabited areas.
