The church of Santa Maria di Pennaluce stands on the Punta Penna promontory, in Vasto, next to the great lighthouse. It takes its name from Pennaluce, the small settlement that grew up here in the Middle Ages together with a fortress. The building is the result of several rebuildings of earlier votive chapels: on 30 October 1618 work was done on the entrance, and between 1676 and 1689 Diego d'Avalos, Marquis of Vasto, had it entirely rebuilt, giving it the Greek-cross plan it still has. Pope Innocent XI granted a plenary indulgence to the church's faithful for Easter Monday.
What to see
The exterior seen today dates from the end of the nineteenth century, when the architect Francesco Benedetti rebuilt it, adding a new portico; the plan has remained a Greek cross.
On the same promontory are the lighthouse, 70 metres high, and the sixteenth-century coastal tower; at its foot is the port of Vasto.
Visiting
The church is far from the centre, in the port area: opening times and services should be checked with Vasto town council or with the diocese.
Our editors' tip
On the second Sunday of May the Madonna della Penna is celebrated here, with a long procession of fishing boats. A legend is attached to the statue: stolen by Turkish pirates, it is said to have been found again in the very spot it had been taken from, while the pirates' ship sank. The d'Avalos gave an income of two thousand ducats so that the pope would raise the church to an abbey of the family.
