Chiesa di Santa Chiara Lecce

Place of Worship Salento, Italy

A stone's throw from Piazza Sant'Oronzo is the Church of Santa Chiara, which has an unfinished façade, as it lacks the upper pediment. The church, founded in 1429, was renovated between 1687 and 1691, probably by Giuseppe Cino.

It was held by the Poor Clares, the monastic order founded by Saint Francis and Saint Clare of Assisi and essentially concentrated on contemplative prayer and enclosure. In fact, in the octagonal interior of the church it is still possible to observe the grates that divide the side chapels from the central space: from here the nuns attended the liturgical functions. The altars inside are sumptuous and innovative.