Church of San Paolo
The Church of San Pietro e Paolo has undergone several renovations over time: founded in 1613, it was initially dedicated to San Michele Arcangelo; in the 15th century it then took the title of San Paolo Apostolo. The high altar, the floor and the sacristy are from the eighteenth century; in fact, in 1747 the church and the sacristy were enlarged.
A marble plaque transmits the date of the consecration made by the Archbishop of Sorrento, Msgr. Saverio Apuzzo on 27 September 1847. Another plaque on the external façade commemorates the visit to Pastena of the First Queen of Italy, Margherita of Savoy, after whom the square in front is named.
The church has a single nave with an apse; the High Altar, erected in 1710, is in polychrome marble. A valuable canvas depicts the Princes of the Apostles. On the left side, at the entrance to the church, there is the altar erected in 1847, on the spot where the baptismal font was previously.
Of notable artistic interest is the painting of S. Francesco di Paola, by the school of Guido Reni. In the newsstand there is the wooden statue of the Addolorata. A second altar, dating back to the church’s foundation, is dedicated to S.M. of Constantinople. An ancient painting depicting the Madonna and SS. Domenico and Agnello bears the noble coat of arms of the founder: Gennaro Vicedomini. The third sacred altar to the SS. Name of Jesus, was previously dedicated to St. Anthony of Padua. A canvas of the Madonna del Carmine, with the SS. Sebastiano and Antonio da Padova, was transferred from this altar to the apse, which also bears the heraldic coat of arms of the Cacace, founders of the altar before 1657.
On the right side, the first altar dates back to 1847 and was replaced in 1862 by another in marble by Gualdieri. Above it is a statue of the Madonna, which replaced a canvas, now kept in the sacristy, of the Virgin of the Carmine.
The second altar is of the Madonna delle Grazie, previously it bore the title of S. Antonio. A painting of 1685 with the Virgin of Grace, S. Rocco and S. Antonio and with the coat of arms of the Scoppa family of Sant’Agata was removed and replaced with a statue of the Madonna delle Grazie, brought from the church of the Desert, before the suppression of the Convent, in 1810. The last altar was first dedicated to the SS. Crucifix, of which there was a wooden statue, in 1685. Later it was dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, in the XVIII century. A painting of the Immaculate Conception with St. Nicholas of Tolentino and B. Scota, at the foot, and the family coat of arms.