Church of Saints Felix and Fortunatus

The present church is the result of several phases of enlargement and renovation of the original structure. 

The façade, restored in 1938, retains its eighteenth-century appearance and is divided into three sections by stone pilasters with Tuscan capitals and a pediment. At the centre, above the portal, is the roundel by Magister Nicolaus dated 1341, and a stone statue of Saint Augustine, created in 1899 by the sculptor Mondini of Nimis and placed within a niche. 

The earliest church dates back to around 1115 and was likely no larger than a chapel, dedicated by the inhabitants of Reana to the Aquileian saints Felix and Fortunatus. No visible traces of this original building remain. 

The date of the second church is known: 1341. This date, together with the name of the builder, Master Nicolò di Marcuccio, appears in the inscription placed above the entrance portal around a cross-shaped relief: 

MAGISTER NICOLAUS ME FECIT ANNO DOMINI MCCCXLI 
(Master Nicolò built me in the year of the Lord 1341) 

Around the mid-15th century, population growth required a first enlargement of the church. A square chapel was built behind the high altar, and it has fortunately been preserved, along with the splendid frescoes that decorate it. 

Further enlargement works, after the church became a parish church in 1548, took place in the 18th century. Construction began in 1744: earlier structures were incorporated into the apse area, and the nave was extended to achieve its present layout and façade. 

The bell tower, partially incorporated into the church structure, features narrow slit openings, a horizontal cornice, and clock faces. The square bell chamber, with Serlian triple-arched windows, is topped by a four-pitched roof covered with terracotta tiles.

The interior consists of a rectangular hall articulated by Doric pilasters supporting a high continuous cornice. The flooring is made of polychrome marble slabs. 

The nave is covered by a barrel vault with lunettes corresponding to the windows and the two side niches on each side. These niches house several statues, among which stands out the Assumption of the Virgin among Angels, a wooden masterpiece by the Udine artist Giovanni Rampogna. 

At the centre of the ceiling is a large fresco depicting the Assumption of the Virgin. The oldest and most valuable part of the church is undoubtedly the presbytery area, accessed by three steps and illuminated by two rectangular windows on the south and north sides. 

The high altar immediately captures the visitor’s attention with its polychrome marbles and elegant, slender tabernacle supported by columns arranged in a semicircle. The two saints at its sides—Felix and Fortunatus—are the titular saints of the church and works by Diodato Perrotti. The bas-relief on the altar frontal depicts the Supper at Emmaus and is attributed to the Venetian sculptor Torretti. 

Behind the altar stands the original 15th-century choir, featuring a vaulted ceiling with four ribbed sections. This is a true jewel for the entire community and for Rojale. At the base of the arch on the north side, an inscription fragment reveals the execution date of these frescoes: 1481. 

The frescoes were created by several artists, including Giovanni Pietro Janzilino. On the large triumphal arch remain traces of an Annunciation and scenes of Cain and Abel. Below, on the left, a Madonna Enthroned with Child is visible. 

The intrados of the arch features a decoration of eight panels depicting Virgin Martyrs, some identifiable by their attributes or by their names, where legible, inscribed on scrolls. 

Two of the four ceiling vault sections, depicting the Creation of Eve and the Coronation of the Virgin, are attributed to a painter active in the second half of the 15th century. The third vault section, with Saint Jerome seated on an elaborate throne in the act of blessing, is by a different hand. The fourth, depicting Saint Gregory enthroned before a lectern, is attributed to Gian Pietro Janzilino, to whom the remaining choir frescoes are also assigned. 

On the left wall of the choir is an extensive Nativity scene incorporating different moments of the narrative. In the same wall, an elegant wrought-iron door once closed a small compartment where the holy oils were kept. 

On the back wall, beside the circular window, are painted the titular saints Felix and Fortunatus; below, at the centre, is a Madonna Enthroned with Child (partially lost due to the opening of a window), flanked by Saint Dorothy and Saint Roch on the left, and Saint Barbara and Saint Sebastian on the right. These are auxiliary and healing saints invoked against epidemics, sudden death and fires—figures widely venerated in an era marked by plagues and Turkish incursions. 

On the right wall, flanking a painted false window, two-tier scenes depict episodes from the life and martyrdom of Saints Felix and Fortunatus, the Descent of Christ into Limbo, and the Flagellation.