The church was begun in 1280 by the Dominican order, in memory of the visit of friar Pietro da Verona to Ascoli in 1250. Construction continued until the 16th century. The facade of travertine blocks has three rounded oculi and a single portal with two flanking columns extending from a rounded pediment. The facade portal was designed by Giuseppe Giosafatti (1643–1731). The lateral portal faces the piazzetta and has Doric columns (1523), designed by Cola dell'Amatrice. Apse of the church On the side walls is an inscription with the tax and customs laws of the city. The interior with three naves has a number of travertine altars. The main altar was designed in 1724 by Giuseppe and Lazzaro Giosafatti, it is decorated with a Madonna del Rosario by Luigi Devò flanked by marble statues or the allegories of purity and humility. The church also has paintings by Lodovico Trasi, Giuseppe Angelini, Giovanni Battista Buonocore of Campli and Tommaso Nardini. The side walls have frescoes from the 13th and 14th centuries. The relic of the Sacred Spine is sheltered in a 15th-century gilded silver reliquary by Nicola da Campli.
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