Italiano
The Pieve Santa Maria Maggiore was probably built in the 12th century, possibly on the remains of an older sacred building dating back to the 8th-10th centuries. Between the 12th and 13th centuries, the Romanesque apse was built, with a semicircular interior and a polygonal exterior, featuring beautiful masonry made of perfectly squared and connected marble blocks. Like most pieve churches of that time, the Pieve of Erbusco is dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta, and it is called Santa Maria “Maggiore” to distinguish it from other churches that were under its jurisdiction.
The baptismal font bears the engraved date of 1408 making it reasonable to hypothosise the construction of the bell tower dates back to the 15th century. In 1415 the Pieve was expanded with the construction of three large, pointed arches that divided the single nave into bays. The importance of Pieve Santa Maria diminished significantly with the construction of the new parish church completed in 1719, to the point of being deconsecrated around 1870.
It was then handed over to the municipality and used as a theater, then as a warehouse, and during World War I, as a shelter for Austrian prisoners. It suffered severe vandalism and devastation until 1926 when Count Fausto Lechi, Count Carlottavio Marchetti, and Count Francesco Secco d’Aragona intervened to restore the ancient Pieve. In 1928, the Pieve was returned to the parish and re-consecrated. Noteworthy is the elevated presbytery, adorned with beautiful frescoes that were restored to their former splendor in 2012 thanks to the intervention of Father Luigi Goffi and the entire community.