Church of the Capuchins, Erice

The Church of the Capuchins is a Roman Catholic church in Erice, Sicily. Built in 1571, it was originally part of the convent of the Order of [Friars Minor Capuchin|Capuchin] friars, which served as a novitiate and cultural centre for the order in western Sicily. Since 2020, the former convent has been occupied by the Poor Clares of the Monastero Sacro Cuore.

History

In 1531 Bartolomeo Nobili, a priest of Erice, and Niccolò Panfalone, a Franciscan tertiary, retired to a secluded valley below Monte San Giuliano. They built a small oratory dedicated to Saint Jerome and lived in adjoining cells with papal permission from Clement VII.
In 1570 the town council invited the Capuchins to settle in Erice, and they arrived the following year. In 1573 Tommaso Pollina, a local nobleman, donated land for gardens, recorded in a notarial act of Antonio Floreno. The convent was rebuilt and expanded in 1640 by Antonio Palma, who also endowed the community with revenues for its upkeep and ordered his own burial in the church.
The convent became one of the most important novitiates of the Sicilian Capuchin Province, housing around thirty friars at its height. Its library was renowned for patristics, theology, and canon law. Many manuscripts later passed to the Biblioteca Fardelliana of Trapani after the suppression of convents in the 19th century.

Architecture

The church, consecrated in 1571, follows the simple style of Capuchin churches. It consists of a single nave with side chapels and a larger chapel. The main altarpiece is an oil painting of the Immaculate Conception, traditionally but erroneously attributed to Salvator Rosa. Other works include canvases by the Capuchin painter Felice da Sambuca and a wooden crucifix by Benedetto da Trapani.

Modern use

After the suppression of religious orders in the 19th century, the convent fell into decline. In 2020 the Poor Clares of the Monastero Sacro Cuore, originally founded in Alcamo in 1914, relocated to the restored Capuchin convent in Erice.