| Sacred architecture in Busto Arsizio (Busto Arsizio) | |
 | |
| Itinerary type | Cycle lane |
|---|---|
| State | Italy |
| Region | Lombardy |
| Territory | Alto Milanese |
| City | Busto Arsizio |
| Start | Aedicule of San Carlo Borromeo |
| end | Church of San Rocco |
Religious architecture of Busto Arsizio is an itinerary that takes place through the city of Busto Arsizio, inAlto Milanese.
Introduction
In the historic center of the city of Busto Arsizio there are several churches and chapels within a radius of 300 meters. This itinerary aims to lead to the discovery of these places of worship, among which we find the three main city churches.
How to get
 | To learn more, see: How to get to Busto Arsizio. |
It is advisable to start the course in Europe. For those who reach Busto Arsizio by car, here there is a large parking area (paid on weekdays) called the Venzaghi car park. For those traveling by bus, the closest stop (less than 100 meters) is in Piazza Alessandro Manzoni, at the beginning of Corso Europa: it is served by urban lines and by line 110 which connects Gallarate is Legnano (more information on the website of STIE S.p.A.).
How to get around
This itinerary can be done by bicycle or, with a variant to reduce the travel time, on foot.
Stages
Sacred architecture in Busto Arsizio: full screen map.- 1 Corso Europa, Venzaghi car park - starting point
- 2 Aedicule of San Carlo Borromeo
- 3 Sanctuary of Santa Maria di Piazza
- 4 Church of Sant'Antonio Abate
- 5 Baptistery of San Filippo Neri
- 6 Basilica of San Giovanni Battista
- 7 Church of San Gregorio Magno in Camposanto(by bike)
- 8 Aedicule of Santa Maria Nascente(by bike)
- 9 Civic Temple of the Beata Vergine delle Grazie(by bike)
- 10 Church of San Michele Arcangelo
- 11 Church of Madonna in Prato
- 12 Church of San Rocco
Aedicule of San Carlo Borromeo
Starting from the Venzaghi car park, after crossing Corso Europa we find ourselves at the entrance to via delle Caserme or via Massari. We take one of these two streets and, at the first intersection with Via Giacomo Matteotti, we turn right. A few meters away, on the left, in correspondence with the homonymous square we find theaedicule of San Carlo Borromeo.
It is a votive capital dating back to the mid-seventeenth century that stands where once there were probably a public well and a monastery, now demolished, in a crucial position, as the road was a passageway of processions from the churches of Santa Maria and San Giovanni reached the church of San Michele Arcangelo. Under the cross vault is the plaster statue of the saint placed on a marble altar and surrounded by the faces of angels.
Sanctuary of Santa Maria di Piazza and church of San'Antonio Abate
From the newsstand of San Carlo Borromeo we continue along via Matteotti for its entire length. We are thus in front of the main entrance of the sanctuary of Santa Maria di Piazza. Moving to the right we can access the homonymous square, from which it is possible to admire in its entirety the church and the bell tower shared with the adjacent church of Sant'Antonio abate.
Built between 1515 and 1522, the sanctuary houses inside the wooden statue of the Madonna dell'Aiuto which, according to tradition, during the plague of 1630 he would have stopped the disease by raising his right hand, which was first placed on his lap. Among the decorations found inside the church we can admire sculptures and paintings by Gaudenzio Ferrari and Bernardino Luini. An exact copy of the sanctuary exists, but smaller, a Crespi d'Adda.
Next to the sanctuary we find the bell tower dating back to 1584. In the past the same tower served as a civic tower. Between 1886 and 1889 the bell tower was built by the architect Carlo Maciachini, who had it covered with pale stone.
On the right of the bell tower is the church of Sant'Antonio abate whose foundation stone was laid in 1363. The church is dedicated to the holy abbot as it is the protector against fires, which were frequent in Busto Arsizio, the city of production of wire first and then fabrics.
Basilica of San Giovanni Battista and baptistery of San Filippo Neri
Alongside the church of Sant'Antonio abate, after having crossed via Sant'Antonio we find ourselves in Piazza San Giovanni, which takes its name from the basilica dedicated to the patron saint of the city.
There basilica of San Giovanni Battista, which in 1948 was elevated to the dignity of a minor basilica, dates back to 1609-1635, although a chapel dedicated to the saint had already been found here since the 13th century. The new church is one of the most important Baroque works in the province of Varese. Inside there are frescoes by various artists, including the bust Biagio Bellotti, who frescoed the apse area and built the altar, the choir and the chapel of San'Ambrogio and Beata Giuliana. The church also houses, under the altar, the relics of San Sabino and, in the chapel of the Crucifix, on the right of the apse, the painting Dead Christ with Saint Dominic, the work of Daniele Crespi.
Observing the facade of the church, on the left you can see a small religious building: it is the baptistery of San Filippo Neri, baptismal church designed by Biagio Bellotti and built between 1744 and 1751. Under the floor of this baptismal church there are five tombs and an ossuary about 24 meters deep.
Church of San Gregorio Magno and Civic Temple of the Beata Vergine delle Grazie
For those who travel this itinerary by bicycle, it is now possible to head towards the church of San Gregorio Magno in Camposanto. To reach it, let's move to the right side of the basilica of San Giovanni, where the statue of the blessed Giuliana Puricelli: right in front of the statue we take via Stefano Bonsignori and, once in the square, we continue on via Cardinal Tosi, which opens on the other side of the square. Continuing for about 50 meters, we can see on our left a small church without decorations: it is the church of San Gregorio Magno in Camposanto.
This church dates back to the 15th century near the cemetery which was built following the plague of 1630 to house the bodies of the victims of the epidemic. It was therefore located outside the ancient walls of the village of Busto Arsizio. In the sixteenth century numerous changes were made based on a project by Biagio Bellotti, who also created the pictorial decoration of the altar, with frescoes depicting the Santi Clemente and Gemolo and, on the vault, Ascension into heaven of a soul purged by the intercession of Charity, by the suffrages of the Church and by individual prayer. On the altar frontal there was a canvas depicting the Glory of St. Gregory the Great, which today is located at the entrance to the church, on the left.
In this church there are also the frescoes that once adorned the outside of the "mortorio" of the basilica of San Giovanni Battista, works by the brothers Ambrogio, Giovanni and Biagio Bellotti (the latter grandfather of the homonymous Bustocco painter). They are paintings dating back to the end of the 15th century that depict images related to death.
Leaving this church, we head towards piazza Trento e Trieste, where the war memorial is located, and then take via Daniele Crespi. At the beginning of this street, on the corner with the square, there is a chapel dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente. We go all the way to the end of the street to find ourselves in Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi: we continue straight into via Fratelli d'Italia and, once we reach the municipal building, which is on the right, we find ourselves in front of a brick church.
This is the civic temple of the Beata Vergine delle Grazie, a building commissioned by canon Benedetto Landriani in 1710. Also in this case the church was located just outside the city walls. Also known as the church of Sant'Anna, due to the altarpiece depicting the saint with San Giuseppe. In 1713 the painters Salvatore and Francesco Bianchi embellished the building, painting theAssumption of the Madonna on the vault above the altar and the Glory of the Madonna on the dome. In the Napoleonic era (1802) the church was deconsecrated and used as a deposit for the gunpowder of the Italian light artillery. In 1831 it was rededicated and in 1880 it was restored by the architect Carlo Maciachini, the same one who in the same period erected the bell tower of the sanctuary of Santa Maria di piazza. Since then the church was abandoned, but after a restoration in 1957 it was used as a civic temple of the municipality of Busto Arsizio.
We can now continue towards the church of San Michele Arcangelo: we then take via Andrea Zappellini, which runs next to the civic temple, on the left and continue straight on to Piazza San Michele, where there is a fountain. Along the way we will meet the Ottolini-Tosi and Ottolini-Tovaglieri Villas and the former Ottolini shoe factory (later Bustese), all buildings designed by Camillo Crespi Balbi.
Variant to reach the church of San Michele Arcangelo directly
For those who travel on foot, from Piazza San Giovanni we recommend going directly to the church of San Michele Arcangelo. We take via Giuseppe Tettamanti, which runs alongside the baptistery and once we reach piazza Vittorio Emanuele II we go left, passing in front of Palazzo Marliani-Cicogna, which houses the civic art collections of Busto Arsizio. continue straight on via Marliani, which then becomes via San Michele until we find ourselves in front of the facade of the church of San Michele Arcangelo.
Church of San Michele Arcangelo and church of Madonna in Prato
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We have now come to the church of San Michele Arcangelo. This church stands where, until the end of the thirteenth century, a Lombard castle stood. The first church, dedicated to San Michele Arcangelo, patron saint of the Lombards, was a chapel located right inside the castle. After the destruction of the castle the church was rebuilt and, in 1653, it was enlarged due to the increase in the number of the faithful. With this expansion the church was oriented differently and today the altar is located to the west and the entrance to the east (Christian churches of the time were usually built with the opposite orientation). This choice was due to the fact that the church was located close to the fortifications of the village, and could not be expanded to the west. Inside, the church is richly decorated with paintings and houses the relics of San Felice Martire, in a chapel dedicated to him. The altar, built between 1752 and 1753, was designed by Biagio Bellotti; the same artist drew the project for the mortorium (of which he also created the pictorial decorations) which is located on the southern side of the church. The bell tower of the church appears very different from the rest of the building: it stands on the remains of one of the towers of the medieval castle, of which the base is still visible, which is the oldest still existing building in the city.
Finding ourselves in the square next to the church, keeping the building behind us, on the left, at the intersection of two streets, we can see a small church: it is the church of Madonna in Prato, built by Biagio Bellotti in 1773-1774 where there was a votive shrine dedicated to the Madonna. The statues on the façade were designed by Bellotti himself, who also painted the frescoes of the main vault with the Glory of the Virgin with the Archangel Michael and, on the pendentives, the painted figures of Esther and Ahasuerus, Judith and Holofernes, David and Abigail, Jael and Sisara.
Church of San Rocco
From the church of San Michele Arcangelo, leaving the church of Madonna in the meadow behind us, we go south along piazza Alessandro Manzoni, keeping to the right side of it. On the left we will meet, in order, via Matteotti and corso Europa; we continue straight up to the next intersection with via Giuseppe Lualdi and take the road. At a distance of 30 meters, on the right we find the church of San Rocco.
The first chapel was built in this place in 1485, after a plague epidemic, and was dedicated to San Rocco, protector of the infected. Between 1706 and 1713 the church was rebuilt and assumed its present form after the works that lasted until 1730. In 1931-1932 it was frescoed by Salvatore and Francesco Maria Bianchi. The sixteenth-century design facade dates back to 1895 and features the statues of San Rocco and San Giuseppe. The last important interventions date back to 1909, when the church was lengthened and the altar moved back by about eight meters.
Return
At the church of San Rocco the tour ends. To return to the starting point of this itinerary, continue along via Giuseppe Lualdi for 50 meters: we will find the Venzaghi car park in front of us.
