Saint Anthony of Salvennor
Medieval Salvennor Saint Anthony’s church is dedicated to Abbot Saint Anthony and can be found on a little hill along the town road of Ploaghe, in front of St. Antimo’s church ruins, and about one hundred meters far from Saint Michael’s abbey.
In the documents of monsignor Alepus’ pastoral visit in 1553, it is declared that this was Salvennor parish church.
Probably built again in XIII century by Vallombrosan monks, who made use of the same workers who erected Saint Michael’s one, this church has only one nave with a wood–beamed roof. It is low, 12,95 meters long and 5,58 meters wide.
There are two main doors, one on the façade and the other on the left side. One can find a large sacristy and several ruined buildings nearby, which in Middle Ages were certainly used as houses by the many pilgrims. Those houses, on the opinion of rector Cossu, had to be six, and they were built up by priest Gio. Maria Lisai, Ploaghe rector in the first years of eighteenth century, who administered its goods, too.
The façade, the main door and the right-angled window were renewed in Aragonan age. The arches, parallel to the roof slopes, have a little double arched lintel; the apse inner arched lintel is semicircular, while the outside one is ogival. The corbels moulding is quite sturdy. On the apse there is a short single lancet window, decorated by a double splay. On the west wall you can see a cross-shaped window.
In the article edited in Sardinian Archaeological Bulletin, by Rector Cossu, from Chiaramonti, who lived in Giovanni Spano’s same time and was Ploaghe rector, it is said that inside the church one could find a single altar with a Saint Anthony’s wood statue, which was skillfully engraved and colored and showed an old, long-bearded, brown-faced man who really inspired worship.
The church was renewed in 1857 by the theologian Stanislao Spano and once again in 1908 by Rector Rugiu.
