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Church of Archangel St Michael in Capofarfa: seven centuries of Sabina names and history
Located outside the centre of Poggio San Lorenzo, along the road to Capofarfa, there is a small church that has undergone several name changes over time. The first record dates back to 1349, appearing in documents as Capella Sancti Angeli de Capufarfa, one of two chapels in the area built just outside the town walls. The same structure likely gave its name to the medieval castle, Castrum Sancti Angeli, though this connection remains hypothetical. Today, it is also known as Santa Maria in Pulaccio, a name rooted in agricultural tradition: locals used to winnow wheat nearby, carrying the chaff (pula) to be burned in a place called Cinipaglia, meaning "straw ash".
Three names, one unbroken strand
Between the 15th and 17th centuries, the church was frequently cited in documents as Sant'Angelo. Its final appearance under the name of San Michele Arcangelo (Archangel St Michael) is recorded in the Gregorian Cadastre of 1819. Since then, the name has shifted once more toward the Marian dedication it retains today. The interior houses 16th-century frescoes, some of the few surviving figurative works in the region.
