The Chapel of the Crucifix was built in 1899 and is located on the mountain of the same name, formerly Mount Ausiliatrice (768 m above sea level), which dominates the village of San Pietro al Tanagro.

It was built during the last decade of the 19th century and inaugurated in 1899, the year in which the festivity was also established. The construction of the small church was supported by both the people of San Pietro al Tanagro and the parish priest Don Andrea Tierno (1893-1910) (1) and the priest Don Giuseppe Procaccio (1874-1948), the latter of whom worked tirelessly to complete the project. The construction faced numerous difficulties, mainly due to the rugged nature of the location and the lack of good transport links. The work was entrusted to master builders Michele Alliegro from Padula (SA) and Arsenio Spinillo from Sant’Arsenio (SA). The stones used for the construction were collected on site and squared by the workers themselves. The interior of the chapel, very simple, with a circular apse, contains a single marble altar surmounted by a cross-shaped shrine. The altar houses (from May to September) a wooden statue of the Crucifix, specially crafted in 1898 by the sculptor Giuseppe Caracciolo of Campagna (SA) in his workshop in Sant’Arsenio. At the base of the altar is the following inscription: “To the devotion of the citizens of San Pietro al Tanagro. Erected A.D. 1899.” In the early 1920s, two statues of the Virgin of Sorrows and Mary Magdalene were added to the sides of the Crucifix, completing the crucifixion scene.

The first village festival was celebrated on Thursday, September 21, 1899. The statue of the Crucifix had most likely been brought to the mountain in May of that year. Only later was it established that the new celebration in the village would take place on the third Sunday of September each year, giving the many faithful, including those from neighboring villages, the opportunity to participate in the event, which consists of the moving processional encounter in Setone between the Crucifix, which descends from the mountain, and Our Lady of Sorrows, who also emerges in procession from the mother church.

(from the article “The Chapel of the Crucifix between Foundation and Restoration” by Nicola Spinelli in the magazine Il Saggio, Eboli).

Decree of Elevation to a Diocesan Shrine
The Chapel of the Most Holy Crucifix was elevated to a Diocesan Shrine by episcopal decree on August 2, 2019, by His Excellency Bishop Antonio De Luca, Bishop of Teggiano-Policastro.