The Church of San Domenico is also known as Annunziata Nuova, a name used to distinguish it from the older Annunziata near the cemetery. It was built in the early 1500s by Susanna Gonzaga, wife of Pietro Cardona, Count of Collesano.
In 1547, at the behest of Pope Paul III, the countess obtained the right to choose the religious order that would care for the church, and entrusted it to the Dominicans. The building therefore links the Gonzaga-Cardona patronage of Collesano with the Dominican presence beside the old convent.
Inside are several works worth slowing down for: the 1623 Madonna del Rosario and Saints, commissioned by the Society of the Most Holy Rosary from Gaspare Vazzano; a 16th-century marble group; the c.1406 Ventimiglia–Moncada mausoleum (Count Antonio Ventimiglia and his wife Elvira Moncada), brought here from the church of San Giacomo in 1665; and a wooden statue of the Madonna del Rosario with Saint Dominic.
NoteExterior always visible. Interior depends on opening hours.
Founded in the early 1500s by Susanna Gonzaga (1485–1556), wife of Pietro II Cardona, Count of Collesano.
Pietro Cardona is buried here — he died at the Battle of Bicocca on 29 April 1522.
Originally entrusted to the Dominicans; the convent next door is now the Palazzo Municipale (Stop 5).
Holds the "Madonna del Rosario e Santi" (1623) by Gaspare Vazzano "Zoppo di Gangi", commissioned by the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary.
Also called "Annunziata Nuova" or "del Rosario" — the Confraternity ties it to the venerated Madonna del Rosario cult.
Timeline
c.1406The Ventimiglia–Moncada mausoleum (Count Antonio Ventimiglia and his wife Elvira Moncada), originally in the church of San Giacomo, is dated; it was moved to this Dominican church in 1665.
early 1500sThe church is built by Countess Susanna Gonzaga and entrusted to the Dominicans (their convent is now the Town Hall).
1522Count Pietro II Cardona, killed at the Battle of Bicocca, is buried here.
1623Gaspare Vazzano “Zoppo di Gangi” paints the “Madonna del Rosario and Saints” for the Rosary confraternity.
1634A Circumcision is painted by Lo Varchi.
1648A wooden Madonna del Rosario, attributed to Giancola Viviano, is added.
People & families
Susanna Gonzaga (1485–1556)— Countess of Collesano who built the church beside the Dominican convent.
Pietro II Cardona (c.1467–1522)— Count of Collesano, killed at the Battle of Bicocca near Milan; buried in this church (Treccani names it “Santa Maria la Nuova”, a variant name).
Antonio Ventimiglia di Lauria (d. 1415)— count of Collesano (1387–98, 1414–15); his and his wife Elvira Moncada’s c.1406 mausoleum is preserved here, moved from San Giacomo in 1665.
Gaspare Vazzano “Zoppo di Gangi” (1562–1630)— painter of the 1623 Rosary altarpiece; the nickname was shared with his pupil Giuseppe Salerno, and the two are often confused.
Giancola Viviano— sculptor of the 1648 wooden Madonna del Rosario.
Stories & traditions
The two by-names map the church’s two lives: “Annunziata Nuova” from a 16th-century marble Annunciation group, and “del Rosario” from the Dominican Rosary confraternity.
Beneath its floor lie the medieval lords of Collesano — Ventimiglia and Cardona — making the church the dynastic resting place of the county.
Count Pietro II Cardona fell at the Battle of Bicocca (1522) near Milan, one of the great clashes of the Italian Wars, and was brought home to be buried here.
Visiting
HoursOpen for Mass and patronal feast days
AdmissionFree
AccessStreet-level main entrance with one or two steps at the threshold.
