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The Madonna della Rocca Church in Jenne: the ancient chapel where a pope was born
On the western tip of Jenne, overlooking the Aniene Valley, the Church of the Madonna della Rocca (Our Lady of the Fortress) — or Santa Maria in Arce — is all that remains of the medieval castle built by Abbot Giovanni V. It was here that Rinaldo dei Signori di Jenne was born around 1199. In 1254 he would become Pope Alexander IV. The small church served as the private chapel of the fortress, and its position — directly above the valley — made it very difficult to conquer.
The frescoes and the terracotta statue
The interior preserves 14th-century frescoes, partially visible on the walls. On the altar is a terracotta image of the Madonna and Child, an object of particular devotion among the people of Jenne. In 1260, Alexander IV himself returned to Jenne, and granted a papal indulgence to all who visited the shrine on the days dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin.
The 20th-century extension
In the 1930s, Don Stanislao Fratticci — known to all as zi' Prete ("Uncle Priest") — expanded the church through donations and voluntary labour from the local population, adding a new wing to accommodate the faithful. Every 8 September, on the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin, the church still fills with residents and emigrated natives of Jenne returning for the occasion.
