Guardiagrele is a town and comune in the province of Chieti, part of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It is in the foothills of the Maiella mountain at an elevation of around 576 metres (1,890 ft). Its population numbers about 10,000. Known throughout Abruzzo for its wrought-iron craft, copper craft and gold-work, Guardiagrele was the home of the great goldsmith and sculptor Nicola da Guardiagrele, who was born there in the late 14th century.
Captivated by the beauty of the panoramic views of the mountains and valleys of the Maiella visible from some points in the town, the poet Gabriele d’Annunzio nicknamed Guardiagrele la terrazza d’Abruzzo (“Abruzzo’s terrace”). Guardiagrele is the seat of the Maiella National Park, and was part of the club Borghi più belli d’Italia (“The most beautiful villages in Italy”).
The biggest church in Guardiagrele is Santa Maria Maggiore of which it has been written:
The façade presents a splendid 14th-century gothic portal, among the most elegant in the Abruzzi Gothic style. The Coronation of the Virgin sculpture group in the portal lunette is also magnificent, attributed to the school of Nicola di Guardiagrele. Under the colonnaded portico, next to the lateral door, is the splendid fresco by Andrea De Litio (1473) portraying Saint Christopher. In the interior, completely rebuilt in the 18th century following an earthquake, crumbling stucco-work in the Baroque style and a shrine of the same period set off a 15th-century fresco representing the Madonna of the Milk.
In addition to Santa Maria Maggiore, there are several other churches and palazzi or mansions of various ages which are of architectural interest, including S. Nicola di Bari (founded in the 4th Century), the convent of the Chapuchins (1599), Palazzo De Lucia (16th century), Palazzo Elisii (15th-18h century), the cloister of the Palazzo Comunale Piazza San Francesco (17th century) and Palazzo Marini (1391). Guardiagrele is host to four museums: Museo Civico (Civic Museum), Museo del Costume e della Tradizione della Nostra Gente (Costume and Folk Museum), Museo del Duomo (“Cathedral Museum”), in Santa Maria Maggiore, Museo Archeologico (“Archaeological Museum”).
