Badia a Isola was one of the sections of the Via Francigena according to the route travelled by Sigeric, Archbishop of Canterbury, who in 994 journeyed from Rome to Canterbury. This is where Ava, the widow of Ildebrando dei Signori di Staggia, had a church built and also at his own expense on February 4, 1001, established a monastery, which came with a land holding of 42 farms. Through the monastery (which appointed the abbot), the family was able to consolidate its portfolio and control the area. The abbey’s church is situated in the middle of the fortified complex of Abbadia a Isola and consists of three-nave basilica. The current church is built where a previous ecclesiastical building stood, which had a three-nave layout divided by pillars, ended in the apse and vaunted a crypt.