Santa Maria Nuova is the oldest surviving church in Viterbo, founded in the 11th century and built in the local Romanesque style with a distinctive carved portal. It stands on a small piazza near the centre of the old town. Despite the name ("New St Mary"), the building is older than most of the city's fabric.
The interior has preserved its Romanesque columns and early medieval proportions better than most of Viterbo's churches, which were heavily altered in later centuries. There is an external pulpit attached to the facade — an unusual feature — from which St Thomas Aquinas is said to have preached on one of his visits to the city. A small cloister adjoins the church.
The surrounding Piazza Santa Maria Nuova is a pleasant spot, shaded and quieter than the main civic squares.