The Chiesa di Santa Maria di Galloro (Church of Santa Maria di Galloro) is a place of worship particularly dear to the citizens of Ariccia. It is located south east of the town, along the Appian Way towards Genzano. The Sanctuary was built in 1624 by the will of Paolo Savelli, with the approval of Pope Urban VIII, after an image of the Virgin was found in the area by Sante Bevilacqua, a young boy from Tuscany living at Ariccia.
The devotion to the Virgin became widespread calling forth many pilgrims and creating the need to build a sanctuary. There have been many miracles attributed to the Virgin. One in particular refers to the plague that broke out in 1656 and spread over lands as far as Rome without contaminating Ariccia. As a sign of gratitude to the Virgin the people of Ariccia celebrate the “Festa della Signorina” on the day of the Immaculate Conception (8th December) by choosing a girl from a local family to offer thanks to the Madonna on behalf of the community.
Later, when Alessandro Chigi was made Pope, the church was reorganized by Gian Lorenzo Bernini who worked on the façade and the internal decorations of the cupola. The floor plan was a Latin cross shape with a single nave and six side chapels and the main altar shows an image of the Madonna di Galloro. In 1716, Pope Clement XI had the remains of San Clemente transferred here.