Fossanova Abbey
abbey in Priverno, Italy
Fossanova Abbey (Italian: Abbazia di Fossanova), earlier Fossa Nuova, is a church that was formerly a Cistercian abbey located near the railway station of Priverno in Latina, Italy, about 100 kilometres (62 miles) south-east of Rome.
History
Fossanova is one of the finest examples of early Burgundian Gothic architecture in Italy, dating to around 1135. Consecrated in 1208 by monks of its motherhouse of Hautecombe, it retains the bare architecture, the magnificent rose window and finely carved capitals, reflecting the prominent role within the area.
In July 1198 Eugenius, the master chamberlain of Apulia and Terra di Lavoro, was ordered by Constance and her son to transfer a land property from the imperial ownership to the Abbey of Fossanova. The property was located near Aversa and its extension was calculated by John Bassus, chamberlain of the Terra di Lavoro.
A monk of Fossanova compiled the Annales Ceccanenses down to 1218. Another historical source for the same temporal extension are the Annales Ceccanenses.
En route to the Second Council of Lyon in 1274, the Dominican scholastic Thomas Aquinas died in the abbey on 7 March.
In 1461 Pope Pius II signed a bull returning to the abbey various properties which had been estranged by the previous abbots. The estate list was compiled by Rodrigo Borgia, nephew of Pope Callixtus III, who was attempting to finance a naval expedition against Turks.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Fossanova Abbey” as abbey in Priverno, Italy. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as abbey in Priverno, Italy. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1775258. VIAF identifies the subject as 156374852. The Library of Congress control number is nr88009566. Authority coordinates are 41.438, 13.196. 3 of 6 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1135, 1208, 1198 and 1218.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Fossanova Abbey”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Fossanova Abbey primary sources, Fossanova Abbey archive and Fossanova research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Fossanova Abbey”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Fossanova Abbey” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.