The church of San Matteo Apostolo (St Matthew the Apostle) is located in the heart of the small hamlet of Persone and has been listed among the assets of the parish of Tignale in the diocese of Trento since 1537.

Images: Cheleo Multimedia

The religious building originated as a chapel between the 14th and 15th centuries and was initially subject to Turano (from 1564 to 1726). In February 1729, it was rebuilt with the small cemetery next to it and elevated to a curacy under the jurisdiction of the diocese of Trento, retaining its registry office and vital records from that date. Subsequent renovations were carried out in the 19th century.

In 1909, the four bells were installed on the bell tower, cast in Trento by the Colbacchini company and dragged over the snow to the valley via Bocca Cocca in winter. In the summer of 1951, it was embellished with the restoration of the bell tower and decorations by the painter Don Bruno Belli from Sopraponte. Between 1971 and 1978, the presbytery underwent significant structural work: the high altar was removed, leaving the tabernacle on a pedestal in the middle of the back wall of the presbytery, while a wooden altar table facing the main body of the church was added.

The façade of the church is gabled and features a central portal and a square window. The interior, with a single nave, is uniformly decorated and has a centrally cross-vaulted ceiling. On either side of the main body of the church are two chapels with side altars. The raised, quadrangular presbytery has a rib-vaulted ceiling and ends with a flat apse that houses the soasa of the high altar.

In the centre of the church is an exquisite altarpiece depicting the patron saint St Matthew with St Anthony the Abbot and Our Lady of the Assumption into Heaven.

On the side of the presbytery are the service rooms, including the sacristy and the bell tower. The structure is made of mixed stone and brick masonry.

Every year, on the Sunday before the Feast of the Assumption, there is a procession dedicated to ‘Our Lady of Sorrows’. The festival includes a solemn mass followed by a procession in which the statue of Our Lady is carried on the participants’ shoulders along the village streets, in a moment of strong community devotion.