Santa Maria della Steccata

In 1531 the confraternity that ran the church hired Parmigianino, Parma's star painter, to decorate the vaults over the presbytery. By 1535 the work was still unfinished. The confraternity voted unanimously to bar him from the church, and he was imprisoned for two months for breach of contract. He left Parma and died of a fever in Casalmaggiore on August 24, 1540, aged 37.

What he did finish is the underside of the eastern arch: three Wise Virgins and three Foolish Virgins, the parable of the girls who kept their lamps lit and those who did not. The figures are tall and elongated, the long-necked elegance that defines his late style. Stand in the nave facing the altar and look up at the last arch before the apse.

The rest of the decoration went to others. Michelangelo Anselmi painted the apse in 1541, and Girolamo Mazzola Bedoli worked here too. For more of Parmigianino, see his early chapels in San Giovanni Evangelista and his Turkish Slave in the Galleria Nazionale.

The church is a Greek cross with a central dome, designed by Bernardino Zaccagni and his son Giovanni Francesco, with changes by Gian Francesco d'Agrate. The dome went up in 1526 and 1527; it is attributed to d'Agrate, with advice from Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. The church was consecrated in 1539. From outside, the dome is easiest to take in from Piazza della Steccata in front of the church.

Inside, the plan is compact: four short arms around the dome. That makes the church quick to read. Walk to the center, look up into the dome, then turn to the east arm for Parmigianino.

Below the church is the burial place of Parma's rulers. In 1823 Marie Louise, then Duchess of Parma, had a crypt made here to hold the remains of the Farnese and Bourbon-Parma families, moved from Santa Maria del Tempio. Twenty-six members of the Farnese family lie here, including Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and one of the great generals of his century, and his wife, Infanta Maria of Portugal. Bourbon-Parma dukes followed. Burials continue: Carlos Hugo of Bourbon-Parma in 2010 and two princesses in 2021 and 2022.

Since 1718 the Steccata has also been the main church of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George; the Parma branch of the order has been independent since 1817. The order keeps a museum at the church.

We could not find a published schedule or price for visiting the crypt or the order's museum in 2026. Ask at the sacristy when you visit, and do not plan a trip around seeing either.

Because it closes at lunch, fit the Steccata into a morning or late afternoon on the way between Piazza Garibaldi and the Teatro Regio. Walking distances we measured:

• Piazza Garibaldi: about 140 m, 2 minutes.
• Teatro Regio: a few minutes along Strada Garibaldi.
• Palazzo della Pilotta: about 560 m, 7 minutes.
• Duomo: about 500 m, 7 minutes.

It is a working church. Avoid Mass times, keep voices low, and dress as you would for any Italian church. The Correggio and Parmigianino walk and our historic centre loop both pass the door.

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