Alghero is located on a strip of land overlooking the sea, along the so-called “Coral Riviera”. The hinterland is rich in archaeological sites that date back to prehistoric times. The city preserves a strong Catalan linguistic and cultural identity and a very significant historic center, with a fifteenth-century physiognomy, in which the important monumental complex of Saint Francis is located. There are no documentary sources that attest to the layout of the San Francesco complex, which represents one of the most fascinating and significant monuments of late Gothic and Renaissance architecture in Sardinia.
Scholars have placed the factory between 1480 and 1598. In 1488, the Tolosan painter Joan Barcelo prepared the gilding of the altarpiece plates to be placed in the main altar of the church, a fact that suggests that at least the latter had already been built. From the seventeenth-century historian Francisco de Vico, we learn of a collapse that occurred in 1593, involving the central body of the church and several chapels; everything was rebuilt by 1598.
Today, the San Francesco complex is the result of these two building phases. The oldest part is the cloister, from the end of the 15th century, with a rectangular plan with round arches on cylindrical and octagonal pillars surmounted by lightly decorated capitals. The bell tower dates back to the same period, starting from a square base and continuing with an octagonal section on the upper floors, ending with a spire.
The church today has three naves, punctuated by round arches on pillars, with side chapels and polygonal apse. The central aisle is barrel-vaulted, while the shuttles have cross-shaped vaults. Of the late Gothic single-aisle factory, the pentagonal presbytery with a stellar vault (of the same height as the central aisle) remains, which is accessed through a triumphal arch consisting of an arch on bundle pillars, the chapels near the choir (three a d., two a s.) and those near the façade (one to the next and one to the s.). The second chapel near the presbytery has a stellar vault. It is worth noting some of the capitals in the entrance arches of the chapels themselves, with elaborate anthropomorphic and phytomorphic depictions typical of Gothic-Catalan decorative motifs.
The entire central part of the church was rebuilt in the 16th century, when the side naves were added and the arches were adapted to the width of the previous chapels. The façade, not perpendicular to the room, has an architraved sixteenth-century portal, decorated with the Franciscan coat of arms surrounded by a series of ornamental motifs, above which a rose window opens with twelve rays connected by pointed arches.

History of studies
Historiography is consistent in placing the construction of the convent complex of San Francesco di Alghero at the end of the 15th century. Renata Serra (1984), followed by Aldo Sari (1985, 1990), hypothesizes the origin of the workers and models from the Iberian Peninsula. Along the lines of these contributions, more recent publications proceed, such as the volume by Luciano Deriu (2000).

Bibliography
F. de Vico, General History of the Island, and Kingdom of Sardinia, divided into seven parts. Barcelona, by Lorenço Déu, 1639, vol IV, chapter 12, c. 50;
V. Angius, Alghero, in Historical-Statistical-Commercial Geographical Dictionary of the States by H.M. the King of Sardinia. Turin, G. Maspero, 1833, vol. I, pp. 77-126;
C. Maltese, Art in Sardinia from V to XVIII. Rome, De Luca, 1962, p. 20;
R. Serra, Sardinian-Catalan Architecture, in I Catalani in Sardegna, edited by J. Carbonell; F. Manconi. Cinisello Balsamo, Silvana, 1984, pp. 125-154;
A. Sari, Contribution to the history of late Gothic architecture in Sardinia. The church of San Francesco in Alghero, studied in honor of Giovanni Lilliu for his seventieth birthday, curated by G. Sotgiu. Cagliari, Stef, 1985, pp. 127-151;
A. Sari, Franciscan Architecture. Contribution to the history of art in Sardinia, “Sardinian Historical Archive of Sassari”, vol. XII (1986), pp. 244-246;
A. Sari, Architecture in Alghero from the 15th to the 17th century, “Biblioteca Francescana Sarda”, vol. IV (1990), pp. 175-240;
San Francesco di Alghero, Church and Monumental Complex, curated by A. Nughes, Alghero, Edizioni del sole, 1991
F. Segni Pulvirenti - A. Sari, Late Gothic and Renaissance Architecture. Nuoro, Ilisso, 1994, sch. 22;
L. Deriu, Alghero, the ancient city. Images and paths, Sassari, C. Delfino, 2000, pp. 118-121.

How to get there
Alghero is located about 37 km from Sassari, along the SS 127 bis. The convent complex of San Francesco is located in the heart of the historic center, along Via Carlo Alberto, which from the port reaches Piazza Sulis.