The church of Santa Maria Forisportam and the “Cropped Column”, Lucca, Italy
Santa Maria Forisportam, also called Santa Maria Bianca, is a Romanesque-style, Roman Catholic church located on piazza Santa Maria Bianca in Lucca, region of Tuscany, Italy.
A church at the site was present by the 12th century, when it was enclosed inside the walls of Lucca. The church is modeled after the Cathedral of Pisa. The exterior remains incomplete, a bell-tower was only added in 1619.
The church was affiliated with the Canonici Regolari of San Salvatore di Bologna in 1512. They remained until the Napoleonic suppression. In 1819 the previous canons returned, and in 1823 the Canons Regular Lateran fused with them into a single order. They continue to be associated with the church. The church has a small monastery and cloister adjacent.
