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1. Basilica of St.Joseph
A long avenue shaded by lime trees leads to the Basilica. The avenue is flanked by a wall in tufa rock into which the Stations of the Cross, the work of R. Secchi of Perugia (1982), were inserted.
The ever-increasing number of pilgrims meant that the space limited to the Holy Cave was no longer sufficient and it was found necessary to build a larger church that would better serve celebrations of the liturgical functions.
It was built in Gothic style with only one nave between 1908 and 1910 according to a design of the Roman-Swiss engineer Carlo Waldis. Above the main door a bas-relief portrays St Joseph with the Child Jesus. Further up are the statues of St Francis of Assisi and St Anthony of Padua modelled on designs by Ugone Linderth.
The 1912 bell-tower has three bells chorded on the notes “ti, la, soh”, like those of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The bells bear the names of the Saints: Bernard, Francis and Anthony.
The decoration of the interior was carried out in 1937 by two Roman painters: Alessandro Purificati and Astero Diodati under the guidance of Prof. Aureliano Scafoletti, who following the classical Gothic examples of Italy and Germany, gave new emphasis to the entire construction through the polychrome decoration, reproducing the travertine marble and the rough serene stone.
The Stations of the Cross, the Lectern and the altar Triptych are carved in wood by the Art School of Ferdinando Stuflesser of Ortisei (Val Gardena).
The Triptych of the Apse, flanked by wooden tablets with St Francis and St Anthony, holds a copy of the Crucifixion that is in the church of St Damian in Assisi. This was donated by Leo XIII to the Shrine of Good Counsel of Genzano and given to Mgr Doebbing by desire of Pius X.
The presbytery was rebuilt in 1967 according to the new liturgical criteria. To the right of the presbytery is the “Mascioni” organ installed in 1973.
