In the heart of Jelsi, in Largo Chiesa Madre, a few steps from the parish church of Sant’Andrea Apostolo and next to the ancient Palazzo Carafa (formerly the Barras), stands the Chapel of the SS. Annunziata. Despite the many transformations it has undergone over the centuries, the chapel still retains much of its original layout.
Over time, the building has undergone numerous changes in use: in 1928 it was used as a parish nursery school, then transformed into a small theater hall for local shows and, finally, into a municipal cultural center. It was during a theatrical performance in 1947 that, in order to solve a technical problem, an underground room was discovered. Vincenzo D’Amico, a careful collector of historical memories of Jelsi, attributed this crypt to the first decades of the 14th century.
The structure of the chapel is simple: the interior space, covered by a pointed vault, is divided into two bays and completely covered with a valuable cycle of frescoes. These paintings are one of the very few examples of medieval pictorial decoration in Molise, a local expression of the post-Giotto influences of the 14th century.
The frescoes of the Annunziata have been the subject of in-depth studies since their discovery, thanks to the research of scholars such as D’Amico, Valente and Fratino, although many aspects of their artistic history still await further investigation. Among the most interesting and important frescoes is a Christ painted naked as an adult. A representation of which there are few examples in all of Italy.
From 1947 to 1974 no significant interventions were recorded, until in 1974 the pictorial cycle was restored by Sergio Donnini. Unfortunately, already at that time the closure of a side window was found, the obstruction of which, caused by the construction of an adjacent house, compromised ventilation, favoring humidity and accelerating the degradation of the frescoes.
Today, thanks to the collaboration between the Superintendence of Historical and Artistic Heritage, the Municipality of Jelsi and the University of Molise, an ambitious project for the conservation and microclimatic improvement of the frescoed crypt has been launched.
This intervention represents an important step forward in safeguarding an artistic heritage as precious as it is fragile, giving back to the community and visitors a place full of history, art and memory.