San Girolamo Emiliani sanctuary
The San Girolamo Emiliani sanctuary ( Italian Santuario San Girolamo Emiliani or Basilica di San Bartolomeo e San Girolamo Emiliani ) is a monastery church in Somasca, a fraction of the Italian municipality of Vercurago in the province of Lecco , Lombardy . The church of the Diocese of Bergamo is named after the apostle Bartholomäus and the founder of the Somaskan Order Hieronymus Ämiliani and has the rank of a minor basilica . The baroque church from the 16th century was expanded repeatedly in neo-baroque style until the 20th century .
history
After the death of Hieronymus Ämiliani on February 8, 1537, the Somaskan Order immediately campaigned for the construction of a worthy church dedicated to the founder of the order, who was canonized in 1767. So in 1544 the construction of today's basilica began in place of the former parish church of San Bartolomeo. The first written records about the church date back to 1575, when it was small and had three altars during a visit to the San Martino valley by Archbishop of Milan Charles Borromeo . The sanctuary was then handed over to the Somaskan Order in 1592 and passed into the Diocese of Bergamo in 1786. Between 1602 and 1610 the church was restored, and between 1608 and 1615 the construction of the bell tower began. Between 1620 and 1650 the church was extended and a new facade was built. New work began in 1778 when the bell tower was raised and the bells replaced. More than a century later, in 1892, the church was extended again by the architect Antonio Piccinelli and a new facade was built, little different from the one previously demolished, with a well-proportioned tympanum above the porch. On December 10, 1958, Pope John XXIII. the sanctuary to the dignity of a minor basilica. In 1967 the construction of the entrance portal began with three arches, which were then increased to four, the church was again extended by two aisles. The facade was completed with a fifth arch and two corner arches to the left and right between 1981 and 1983 when the entire building was renovated and the access stairs were raised. Between 2002 and 2003 the paths were adapted for accessibility, in 2013 work was carried out to restore the original liturgical complex and the inner paving was rebuilt.
architecture
The three-aisled basilica has an east-facing rectangular floor plan over four bays . The central nave has a barrel vault supported by columns and two side aisles covered by cross vaults . There are four pilasters with Corinthian capitals on each pillar . The basilica is surrounded by gardens and large squares, and a long and wide porphyry staircase has been laid out in front of the entrance . In front of the Baroque facade there is a vestibule with a width of five arches, which rest on pairs of columns on a raised base. A statue of St. Jerome is presented in a niche in the semicircular gable above the vestibule. The actual facade consists of a central body, higher than the side ones, which end with a horizontal cornice. The central body houses an entrance door clad in bronze, which is the work of the sculptor Mario Toffetti; its panels depict some scenes from the life of St. Jerome. At the top of the facade there are two narrow arched windows and a central rose window . The curved cornice that completes the building is supported by a few pilasters at its ends. The roof is sloping, has a wooden supporting structure and is covered with tiles.
Furnishing
Three stories from the life of St. Jerome are depicted on the vault of the nave. A side altar on the right is dedicated to him, created between 1754 and 1757, and his relics are kept in a silver urn from 1867; Above it is a high bronze relief depicting St. Jerome hugging two orphans and created by the sculptor Alberto Ceppi. On the left, the altar by the Bergamo painter Carlo Ceresa is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary . The choir, which is raised by six steps, is roofed with a barrel vault. The main altar in Baroque style is made of polychrome marble and shows a painting of Jerome in prayer from 1619. To the right of the altar is the old tomb of Saint Jerome in a chapel, in which his companion Vincenzo Gambarana and Evangelista Dorati, one of the first general fathers of the Order, are buried. The choir is vaulted and the paintings that adorn it are by Carlo Ceresa, and there are two niches with relics.
A 20th century organ by Pirola with 22 registers on two manuals and a pedal is installed above the entrance.
Web links
- Sanctuary website (Italian)
Individual evidence
- ^ Basilica di S. Bartolomeo e S. Girolamo Emiliani on gcatholic.org
- ↑ a b Santuario San Girolamo. Retrieved March 31, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ a b Santuario di San Girolamo Emiliani. Retrieved March 31, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ a b Chiese di Vercurago Basilica approfondimento (Italian)
- ^ Santuario di San Girolamo Emiliani. Retrieved March 31, 2020 (Italian).
- ↑ Gio Maironi da Ponte: Dictionnaire odepórico, o sia storico-politico-naturale della provincia bergamasca. limited preview .
Coordinates: 45 ° 48 ′ 40.2 " N , 9 ° 25 ′ 45.5" E