La chiesa di Santa Margherita d’Antiochia

Quiet, beautiful, but small. makes for nice photos at sunset. many nice places to eat, some nice places to shop nearby. Free entrance and beautiful view from the harbour.

This distinctive church was built in 1318 in the Ligurian Gothic style on the site of a former 11^th century building. It was built on a cliff overlooking the sea and has an impressive 40 meter high bell tower with an octagonal dome. Gayle and I briefly stopped by after our first stage Cinque Terre hike from Monterosso to Vernazza.
Inside the church is a nave and two aisles and the church was widened in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Legend says that the church was built because a wooden box containing the bones of St Margaret was found on the beach. The villagers built a church elsewhere to house the relics, but after damaging storms the church was destroyed and the relics were lost. The wooden box then reappeared in the same spot where it was first found. At that point, the current church was built.