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Church of Madonna del Colle della Fonte: the rural church of Cottanello
The Church of Madonna del Colle della Fonte stands just outside the village of Cottanello. It was built on the remains of a pagan temple, near the spring that fed the Roman villa of the Cotta family at Collesecco — the family from which the town takes its name. The church is comprised of a single nave, limestone rubble walls, and terracotta flooring.
A portal that tells us more than the façade
The façade is plastered, with a gabled profile. But the interesting detail is the stone portal with a broken pediment, at the centre of which sits a coat of arms. Two square windows flank the wooden door, while a rectangular one opens above, aligned on the same axis. Inside, everything is white, and only the altar speaks to us.
The concave altar and the restored fresco
The altar is the heart of the church. Four cylindrical columns support a moulded cornice, above which stand two sculptures of the Annunciation. At the centre, framed by decorated stucco work, is the fresco of the Virgin Mary with Saints Peter, Paul, Roch and Sebastian, restored in 2003. The wall-mounted altar table coexists with the post-conciliar one, supported by three stone blocks.
From uncertain origins to pastoral visits
No one knows for certain when it was built, but estimates range between the 12th and the 16th century. After the year 1600, the church was renovated. Underground, a discovery was made: tombs where foreigners who died in the area were buried. In 1779, Cardinal Andrea Corsini visited the church and described it in detail. In 1833, Cardinal Carlo Odescalchi classified it as a "rural church".
