Descending from Piazza del Duomo towards the Tagliamento, halfway down the slope, you find the Chiesetta dell’Ancona.

The original title of the church, linked to tradition, is that of Santa Sabbata (Santa Sabida), a non-existent saint traceable to pre-Christian cults related to river courses. However, as early as 1597, the Ancona was dedicated to the Madonna della Mercede (venerated on September 24) prayed to as the protector from the dangers of crossing the Tagliamento. Initially, instead of the building we see today, there was a small chapel, which was expanded and made into a "church" in 1672 with materials from the destroyed Church of San Girolamo in Saletto, devastated by a flood of the Tagliamento.

In 1687, the Ancona was expanded with a loggia to accommodate the ever-growing number of faithful who gathered there.

Subsequently, it was restored and expanded several times until 1968, when the new altar and the statue of Santa Rita were consecrated and blessed by Bishop Monsignor Carniello.

In 1976, it was destroyed by an earthquake and regained its former splendor in 1978.

Today, the church, very simple and sober, rests on a regular plan and presents itself with a single hall. Externally, it is possible to admire a charming porch supported by five columns, and halfway up the left side rises the bell tower. Inside, there is an altar in polychrome marble and a late 15th-century fresco depicting the Madonna with Child and two little angels.

(text: ViviSpilimbergo - Photo Denis Scarpante)

In this place, merchants and pilgrims would meet, as it was located on a mandatory passage to cross the ford of the Tagliamento, after paying a toll, then reach Gemona, Venzone and continue towards the Germanies.

For those entering Spilimbergo after crossing the ford, it was the temple where they prayed to the Madonna for the protection granted and the escape from dangers, which were frequent at the time: loss of cargo, injuries, drownings. This is why ex-votos, painted tablets of popular taste, were deposited here as a form of thanks and devotion (now collected and preserved in the parish archive).

It was therefore a meeting point, a place for commercial exchanges and prayer.

For its beauty and its panoramic position on the Tagliamento, the Ancona is considered by the inhabitants of Spilimbergo as the little church of lovers.

(Text: ViviSpilimbergo - Photo Denis Scarpante)