Saint Pantaleone

Massarosa, località Pieve a Elici

In the XII^th century the pieve of San Pantaleone was nearly completely rebuilt upon the Early Medieval construction; the latter is mentioned in sources, though only scanty remains of its walls can be seen today on the north side. The new church was built according to a Latin cross plan, divided in three aisles and provided with a semicircular apse. In 1470 a new high altar was built and a marble triptych was placed upon it. The most relevant transformations, of a mainly structural nature, were carried out in 1725, as we know from an inscription in the open gallery to the north of the church: the monofore and the bifora on the façade were replaced by large rectangular windows and an arched entrance was built in place of an earlier one on the north side; besides, the interior was covered with a vaulted ceiling and the pillars and walls were entirely plastered. The 20^th century restoration, that was begun in 1906 and resumed for a second time in 1956, aimed at recovering the original Medieval structure of the church by reopening the monofore and the bifora on the façade. The pieve, formerly dedicated to S. Ambrogio, is first mentioned in 892.