FILIPPO di CAMPELLO. — Franciscan of the thirteenth century, born at Campello sul Clitunno, near Spoleto. A tradition based on a brief of Innocent IV dated 10 July 1253, addressed to F. as «magistro et praeposito operis Ecclesiae S. Francisci», makes him the architect who succeeded friar Elia in directing the construction of the basilica of S. Francesco at Assisi, which he is said to have completed.
Moreover, on the basis of stylistic affinities with that church, he is credited with the basilica of S. Chiara (1257) in the same city, the churches of S. Francesco at Gualdo Tadino and Terni, and that of S. Simone at Spoleto. F. would therefore be one of the earliest cultivators of art among the Franciscans. But this tradition was shaken by Venturi, who called into question even the qualification of architect attributed to F., seeing in him a mere «spenditore» or «economico». The controversy that ensued has not produced sufficient evidence for a conclusive clarification; nevertheless, the traditional view still enjoys the support of many.
