Sassari, Church of Santa Maria di Betlem

Currently, the church is part of the town, but it was once located outside the walls near the now demolished Utzeri Gate. From here the Candlesticks start in the annual devotional procession that involves trade guilds and the entire population of Sassari.
Santa Maria di Betlem stands out in the Sassari monumental landscape because of the interest and richness of its architectural forms, which cover a long chronological period, from the 13th to the 19th century. The Franciscan community settled in the area in 1274 and even today the complex is attached to a convent of Friars Minor.
The original Gothic structure, probably from the last quarter of the 13th century, must have been a “commissioned” cross, with limestone wall walls, a single-bay room with a transept and a wooden roof. Later, the demolition of the transept and the raising of a pseudo-dome erased the planting structures in the presbyterial area, which was remodeled several times starting from the 14th century. From this period, a presbyterial chapel has been preserved, with a cross vault on ogival arches that rise from capitals with “crochet” leaves.
The thirteenth-century façade is tripartite horizontally and delimited by two sturdy pilasters. The portal is arched and trumped with a succession of bulls and gorges. Divided by a molded frame, the second order houses a large oculus coeval with the thirteenth-century structure. In the pediment in line with the portal and the oculus, another light opens, probably from 1711.

History of studies
The church is mentioned by Vittorio Angius (1849) and General Alberto Della Marmora (1860) mentions it in his “Itinerary”. The historical-artistic research was undertaken in the fifties of the last century by Raffaello Delogu. The most complete contributions are by Roberto Coroneo (1993) and Marisa Porcu Gaias (1996).

Bibliography
V. Angius, entry “Sassari”, in G. Casalis, Historical and Statistical Geographical Dictionary of the
States by H.M. the King of Sardinia, XV, Turin, G. Maspero, 1849, p. 315;
A. Della Marmora, Itinerary of the Island of Sardinia, Cagliari, Alagna, 1868, p. 598;
R. Delogu, The Architecture of the Middle Ages in Sardinia, Rome, The State Library, 1953, pp. 196-197; M. Botteri, Guide to the Medieval Churches of Sardinia, Sassari, Chiarella, 1978, p.. 130; A. Sari, “Where do the candlesticks start”, in Almanac of Cagliari '89, 1988, without pages;
A. Casula, “The wall and some testimonies of the Romanesque and Gothic periods”, in Sassari: the origins, Sassari, Chiarella, 1989, p. 144; S. Naitza, Architecture from the late 17th century to purist classicism. Nuoro, Ilisso, 1992, sheet 75;
R. Coroneo, Romanesque architecture from the mid-thousand to the early 1300s. Nuoro, Ilisso, 1993, sheet 150;
F. Segni Pulvirenti - A. Sari, Late Gothic and Renaissance Architecture. Nuoro, Ilisso, 1994, sheet 28;
M. Porcu Gaias, Sassari. Architectural and urban history from its origins to the 17th century, Nuoro, Ilisso, 1996, pp. 75-78;
G. Piras, “The medieval funerary epigraphs of the church of S. Maria di Betlem in Sassari”, in Biblioteca Francescana Sarda, X, 2002, pp. 69-73;
A. Sari, Archdiocese of Sassari, series “Churches and Sacred Art in Sardinia”, Cagliari, Zonza, 2003; R. Coroneo, Romanesque Churches of Sardinia. Cultural tourist itineraries, Cagliari, AV, 2005, p. 26.