Certosa di Trisulti, the first Benedictine abbey founded more than a thousand years ago

The Certosa di Trisulti is a former Carthusian or Charterhouse monastery, now owned by the Cistercians, in Collepardo, in the province of Frosinone, in central Italy. It is located on the slopes of Monte Rotonaria, a peak of the Ernici Mountains, 825 meters above sea level. It was consecrated in 1211, becoming a national monument in 1873.

The abbey is surrounded by a massive line of walls. The entrance has a bust of San Bartolomeo by Jacopo Lo Duca, a pupil of Michelangelo Buonarroti; this leads to a central square where there is a Romanesque-Gothic guesthouse, commonly known as the “Palace of Innocent III” (comprising a portico, a terrace and a library of 36,000 volumes), and the church of San Bartolomeo.

The Church of San Bartolomeo

The church was originally a tall, narrow Gothic-style building, but was largely rebuilt in the Baroque style. The facade (1798) was designed by Paolo Posi. The interior, like the other Carthusian churches, is divided by an iconostasis which housed the cloistered monks. The canvases depicting St. John the Baptist and St. Michael the Archangel are copies that replace the stolen originals. The finely carved door by Giuseppe Kofler is flanked by glass coffins of two martyrs. There are two wooden choirs: dating back to 1564 and 1688, both created by Carthusian masters.

The concave ceiling was frescoed with the Glory of Paradise (1683) by Giuseppe Caci. The main altarpiece depicts a Madonna and Child Enthroned with St Bartholomew and St Bruno by Vincenzo Manenti. On the walls are 19th-century canvases depicting scenes from the Bible with ovals depicting blessed Carthusian monks and saints by Filippo Balbi. There are also altarpieces by Giacomo Manco.

The complex also includes an 18th century pharmacy, on two levels; it is decorated with trompe-l’oeil and grotesque frescoes and contemporary furniture. The garden in front of the pharmacy was once a botanical garden. The halls have gender-themed frescoes by Filippo Balbi. For more information you can see this link.

Photo by pietro scerrato / CC BY.