Historical archive

The Fabbrica or Fabbriceria of San Petronio is the institution created in 1389 by the Municipality of Bologna to oversee the construction and later the preservation of the great Basilica dedicated to the city’s patron saint and to manage the allocated funds.

The first record of a commission of four people – the superintendents – appointed to build the church dates back to 31 January 1390. The superintendents were entrusted with the tasks of assessing the buildings and land that had to be expropriated and carrying out the construction of the Basilica. In 1395, a commission completed the drafting of a Statute, which formed the legal basis for the Fabbriceria’s governance until the end of the 18th century.

The administration of the institution was entrusted to four churchwardens with a two-year term of office. There were various revenue sources: retention of four denaris per lira on payments by the municipality and a tithe on pious bequests, which was also extended to donations, allocation of fines for violations of the Statute, revenue for granting private individuals or corporations the right of patronage over the chapels in the new church, and donation of the inheritances of those who died without making a will.  

When the church of San Petronio was erected as a collegiate church in 1463, the Sixteen Reformers of the State of Liberty decreed that the proceeds of the “duty of the Piazza and fruits” be used to pay the salaries of the instituted canons, chaplains and clerics and to purchase furnishings. All of these revenue sources were then supplemented by offerings from the faithful and the income from a property stock consisting mainly of the buildings purchased for demolition to enlarge the Basilica, which were rented out in the meantime for use as craft workshops, shops and colleges.  

Starting in 1471, a permanent camerlengo with presidential powers was added to the four churchwardens. This office became a papal appointment, but was always conferred on prominent members of the Bolognese ruling class. In 1591, the number of churchwardens rose to five and in 1771 to seven. During the Napoleonic period, the Fabbriceria ended up being administered by the Municipality of Bologna, and after the Restoration, in 1826, the Cardinal Legate Giuseppe Albani definitively set the number of churchwardens at five.  

From 1830, by order of the Cardinal Legate Tommaso Bernetti, the Fabbriceria was presided over by the pro tempore head of the municipal administration and this system continued even after the Unification of Italy, until the application of the concordat regulations in 1937. From then on, the churchwardens were appointed by prefectorial decree at the proposal of the Archbishop of Bologna.

This ‘concordat’ vestry was suppressed by decree of the President of the Republic in 1988. As a consequence of this, Cardinal Giacomo Biffi, Archbishop of Bologna, with an act of 21 March 1989, established a Council for Economic Affairs with the task of assisting the Primicerius of the Chapter of San Petronio, who is the legal representative of the Basilica, in the administration of the Basilica and its patrimony. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)

The Fabbriceria is currently composed of the pro tempore Primicerius of the Chapter, as President, and four churchwardens, two appointed by the Chapter and two by the Archbishop, with five-year appointments.

From the outset, the Fabbriceria was concerned with preserving its accounting records and the documents produced by the churchwardens in the course of their work.

In 1650, the churchwardens appointed one of their own, Senator Giovanni Lupari, to oversee the documents concerning the Fabbriceria, but until the next century, archiving remained an open question.

In 1773, work began to collect all documents kept in other locations on the second floor of the Fabbriceria’s residence, the current location. Domenico Marchioni, aide to the Chancellery of the Senate, was entrusted with the task of compiling a summary of the documents, with the help of notary Antonio Maria Tarsizio Giusti and Vincenzo Lazzari, amanuensis of the Bolognese Public Archive.

The work on the Fabbriceria Archive, however, remained unfinished. The task was later assigned in 1821 to Pietro Busatti, archivist of the Tribunal, and in 1849 to Filippo Alfonso Fontana, archivist of the Legation, who completed the work in 1851.
In the meantime, the archive had been the subject of historical research. The work carried out by Giusti and Lazzari had already led to the discovery of several important facts about the history of the Basilica—most notably, the identification of Antonio di Vincenzo as its first architect.

The growing interest in research led the Fabbriceria to consider providing the archive with an inventory. In 1891, the Fabbriceria turned to Carlo Malagola, director of the State Archives in Bologna, and then to Francesco Giorgi, an official of the State Archives in Bologna, who completed the task in 1899, although the results were far from the compilation of an inventory based on the historical method.

In 1930, Giorgi was again entrusted with the task of cataloguing the archive and finally drew up an inventory that was later printed (L’archivio della Fabbriceria di S. Petronio di Bologna riordinato da Francesco Giorgi, Bologna, stab. Luigi Parma, 1931).

Between 1959 and 1961, the premises of the Archives were renovated and the historical documentation was reorganised with updated criteria. The work ended with the inventory published in 2008.

The Fabbriceria Historical Archive currently consists of 726 items (including volumes, envelopes and bundles) and includes administrative and accounting records relating to the Basilica from the end of the 14th century to 1937. This is supplemented by an iconographic document collection of various nature and periods with drawings, prints and various iconography related to the Basilica (19th-20th centuries), to the Fabbriceria’s property (17th-20th centuries) and property not related to the Fabbriceria (17th-20th centuries).

(from Mario Fanti, L’archivio storico della Fabbriceria di San Petronio e il suo ordinamento, in Una Basilica per una città. Sei secoli in San Petronio. Atti del Convegno di studi per il sesto centenario di fondazione della Basilica di San Petronio, 1390-1990, edited by Mario Fanti and Deanna Lenzi, Bologna, Tipoarte, 1994, pp. 187-194)

The Fabbriceria Archive currently contains:

• Historical Archive of the Fabbriceria (1286–1951, 726 items)
• Aggregated Archives:
– Ceremonial Officials and Sacristans of San Petronio (16th–20th centuries, 58 items)
– Confraternities and Pious Unions in San Petronio (17th–20th centuries, 15 items)
– Suppressed Chapter of San Petronio (16th–19th centuries, 50 items)
– Personal Papers of Mons. Gaetano Golfieri (19th century, 25 items)
– Liturgical Books, Manuscript and Printed (15th–20th centuries, 212 items)
– Executive Committee for the Façade Works of the Basilica of San Petronio (19th–20th centuries, 16 items)
• Current Records Archive of the Fabbriceria (from 1937)
• Archive of the Church Administration (Azienda di Chiesa) (from 1930)
• Papers of Mons. Amleto Faenza (1925–2019, 2 boxes)

The Fabbriceria’s Historical Archive and the aggregated archives are accompanied by an analytical inventory (see L’Archivio della Fabbriceria di San Petronio in Bologna. Inventario, edited by Mario Fanti, Bologna, Costa, 2008). The papers of Msgr. Amleto Faenza are accompanied by a typewritten analytical list (2022). .

Staff
The archive is overseen by its director, Dr. Mario Fanti, who is supported by an assistant.

LocationThe Fabbriceria Historical Archive is located inside the Basilica, on the south-eastern side. Material can be consulted in the archive’s designated room.

Access to the Archive
The Archive is open to the public by appointment. To schedule a visit, please email: archivio.storico@basilicadisanpetronio.org, or contact Dr. Patrizia Busi at +39 348 4414917.
Closure periods are announced in advance through the Basilica’s information channels. Normally, the Archive’s opening hours follow the Basilica’s general calendar.
For users with disabilities or other special needs, consultation of requested materials can take place in barrier-free spaces. To ensure accessibility, it is recommended to contact the Archive staff in advance.
All users are required to comply with the rules outlined below.

Download the Rules of Access to the Historical Archive

Reproductions for Study Purposes
• Users are allowed to make reproductions of consulted materials using their own devices for study purposes.
• When reproducing materials, users must follow the archivist’s instructions and handle documents with special care. The following are not permitted:
– Use of flash, portable lighting, scanners, or tripods;
– Standing on chairs or ladders, or placing materials on the floor;
– Flattening documents with hands, forcing books open, or holding books/documents in mid-air.
• Any special requirements—such as a large number of shots or difficult shooting conditions—must be communicated in advance to the Archive staff, who will assess the appropriate procedure.
• Researchers are required to provide a copy of any publication that includes images of materials for which they have received authorization to publish.

Reproductions for Publication Purposes
To publish reproductions of materials from the Archive—whether in printed books, posters, panels, e-books, or websites—it is necessary to submit a request to the Primicerio by downloading the form at the top of the page and sending the completed version to: archivio.storico@basilicadisanpetronio.org.
A reproduction fee is required for such use; the amount will be determined by the Archive’s Directorate based on the nature, reach, and purpose of the publication.

Remote Services
• Written information can be provided remotely by contacting: archivio.storico@basilicadisanpetronio.org
• These services aim to assist researchers in identifying relevant sources and bibliography within the Historical Archive’s holdings. Document transcriptions are not provided, nor can the Archive staff conduct research in place of the user.
• Responses will be provided within 10–15 working days.
• Reproductions for study purposes can also be requested to archivio.storico@basilicadisanpetronio.org. Upon receiving a request, the Archive will send a preliminary response, followed by the images within two working weeks, except in cases of delays or special circumstances.

Reference Bibliography
Mario Fanti, The Fabbriceria of San Petronio in Bologna from the 14th to the 20th Century: History of an Institution , Rome, Herder, 1980

Sixth Centenary of the Foundation of the Basilica of San Petronio 1390–1990: Documents for a History , edited by Rosalba D’Amico… et al.; coordinated by Mario Fanti, Carlo De Angelis; introduction by Gina Fasoli, Bologna, Nuova Alfa, 1990, pp. 46-49

A Basilica for a City. Six Centuries in San Petronio. Proceedings of the Conference for the Sixth Centenary of the Foundation of the Basilica of San Petronio , 1390-1990, edited by Mario Fanti and Deanna Lenzi, Bologna, Tipoarte, 1994

The Archive of the Fabbriceria of San Petronio in Bologna: Inventory edited by Mario Fanti, Bologna, Costa, 2008

Il museo di San Petronio in Bologna, texts by Antonio Buitoni, Mario Fanti, Massimo Medica; edited by Mario Fanti; foreword by Jadranka Bentini, Bologna, Costa, 2003

M. Fanti, M. Fanti, The Iconographic Collection of the Archive of the Fabbriceria of San Petronio in Bologna, in Arti a confronto. Studi in onore di Anna Maria Matteucci , edited by Deanna Lenzi, Bologna, Editrice Compositori, 2004, pp. 41-47.