In this location, the Conventual Friars settled in the 14th century and erected a first church dedicated to San Rocco. The 15th-century portal of this building is still preserved on the façade, enriched by the coats of arms of the commissioning noble families. In 1531, the construction of the current church, dedicated to San Francesco, began. The façade remains unfinished, and the interior was completely remodeled in the 18th century.

The large interior is in a clear late-Baroque style, rich in stucco decorations in white and ivory tones. It features a single nave with two altars on each side, a raised presbytery with a semicircular apse and a dome. The space is longitudinally punctuated by large fluted Corinthian half-columns set against the walls, supporting a strongly projecting cornice from which the lunetted barrel vault springs.

The altars, embellished with polychrome marble, host various canvases, among which the altarpiece of the high altar depicting the Resurrection of Lazarus stands out. This work, dating from 1543, is by Pompeo Morganti of Fano (and risked ending up in France as spoils of the Napoleonic army’s passage). Also notable is the Madonna of the Rosary, dated 1571, by Ercole Ramazzani.

The presbytery, enclosed by a balustrade with 18th-century pink marble putti, accommodates an elegant coeval wooden choir. [Source: Wikipedia – Chiesa di San Francesco]