Santa Lucia, Trapani

Santa Lucia is a former Roman Catholic church in Trapani, Sicily. Of medieval origin, it served as the principal place of worship for the city’s fishing and coral-fishing community, and its façade bore 17th-century inscriptions commemorating major coral discoveries central to the local economy. The building is now disused. The church stood beside the Convento di Sant’Anna on the northern curtain wall of the old city, between the Bastione Sant’Anna and the Bastione Conca of the Mura di Tramontana. At times it also functioned as a place for storing and trading coral. The convent’s former cloister now houses the State Archives of Trapani. History The origins of Santa Lucia are medieval, and the church is described in the late 19th century as an "antichissima chiesetta … situata presso il mare" ("a very ancient little church … situated near the sea"). It served as the devotional centre for the community of fishermen and coral workers who operated from the nearby shoreline, and by the 15th century this group had formed a distinct confraternity closely linked to the building. The church also played a practical role in the city’s coral economy. Contemporary accounts describe how coral that was not sold directly on the quay was stored inside Santa Lucia, where local and foreign merchants were brought to examine and purchase the material. This commercial use reflects the close relationship between devotional life and maritime labour in the quarter, and the centrality of coral fishing to Trapani’s prosperity in the early modern period. Santa Lucia formed part of a small religious complex adjoining the Convento di Sant’Anna, which stood immediately behind the church along the northern curtain wall of the city. The convent was suppressed in the 19th century, and its cloister was later adapted to house the State Archives of Trapani. The church itself fell gradually into disuse and was formally closed to worship in 1945. Although now abandoned, it remains an important witness to the maritime life of historic Trapani. Architecture Santa Lucia is a small, single-aisled church of medieval origin, extensively altered over time but preserving significant traces of its early modern appearance. Historical descriptions note that the façade bore two 17th-century inscriptions added in 1651 and 1673 to commemorate the discovery of particularly rich offshore coral banks, reflecting the economic and devotional ties between the fishermen and the church. The church’s portal, remodelled in the same period, features sculptural decoration associated with the maritime identity of its congregants. One of the pedestals beneath the jambs was described as depicting a Trapanese fishing boat, while the coat of arms carved above the entrance combined traditional attributes of Saint Lucy—including the chalice with two eyes, a palm of martyrdom, and a lily of virginity—with symbols of divine protection used by seafarers. Little of the interior survives today, although historical accounts record that it once held the confraternity’s statue of Saint Lucy, now relocated to the church of San Francesco d’Assisi. The building formed the southern edge of the small cloister belonging to the adjoining Convento di Sant’Anna; remnants of this monastic complex remain visible in the layout of the present Archivio di Stato di Trapani. See also Former Fish Market – 19th-century seafront market pavilion Former Ice Factory – 19th-century ice factory on the northern waterfront Mura di Tramontana – northern defensive walls of the old harbour Specus Corallii – installation on the city’s coral and maritime heritage San Liberale – former church near the Ligny Tower built by coral fishermen References