Sacro Monte d'Orta

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Chapel XV depicting the stigmatization of St. Francis

The Sacro Monte d'Orta is a pilgrimage site and is one of the nine pre-alpine Sacri Monti in Piedmont and Lombardy , which were declared a World Heritage Site in 2003 . It is located above the municipality of Orta San Giulio in the province of Novara .

history

Vision of St. Francis, altarpiece in the Church of St. Nicholas and Francis
The vocation of St. Francis in front of a crucifix in San Damiano

The Sacro Monte d'Orta rises on a hill in the center of the Orta San Giulio peninsula on the eastern shore of Lake Orta . The history of its construction is similar to that of the Sacro Monte di Varallo . Unlike other Sacri Monti, that of Orta is entirely dedicated to the memory of a single saint . The chapels of the pilgrimage route depict scenes from the life of St. Francis . The Sacro Monte Monte d'Orta was built between 1590 and 1788. In the first construction phase from 1590 to 1630, buildings were erected in the Mannerist style, in the second construction phase up to the end of the 17th century mainly baroque ones .

In 1583 the inhabitants of Orta decided to build a convent for the Capuchins and a number of chapels on a hill in the Selva di San Nicolao ("Forest of St. Nicholas") . The first donors were Amico Canobio from Novara, the abbot of the monastery of San Bartolomeo di Vallombrosa in Novara , the residents of Orta and other benefactors. The scheme of the complex was designed by the Capuchin P. Cleto from Castelletto sopra Ticino , an architect. The original plan was to build 36 chapels, twenty of which were built. Work on the construction of the monastery began in 1590. The construction of the chapels began a year later, with the later XX chapel, inside of which the canonization of St. Francis was depicted. The then Bishop of Novara , Carlo Bascapè, who particularly venerated Charles Borromeo, took care of the organizational and artistic details of the project himself between 1593 and 1615.

The 11th century church on the summit of Sacro Monte is dedicated to St. Consecrated to Nicholas . In the course of the work, it was redesigned in the style of the lower basilica of San Francesco in Assisi and dedicated to St. Francis consecrated as co-patron. This redesign earned the complex the nickname “ Assisi of the North”. A miracle is ascribed to the wooden Pietà in the church, which is said to have occurred in 1538. It is a German-made sculpture, the creation of which is dated between the 10th and 11th centuries. The image of the Virgin Mary, inserted in a baroque niche, was crowned in September 2006 , the crowns are the work and gift of a Milanese goldsmith's workshop.

Ceiling fresco in one of the chapels

In the chapels, which are located on a spiral path leading upwards, there are scenic representations with a total of 376 life-size statues made of painted terracotta and numerous frescoes with episodes from the life of St. Francis. There is a statue of the Saint by Dionigi Bussola on the entrance arch.

Chapel VII, Confirmation of the Rule of St. Francis

In the first construction phase until the middle of the 17th century, artists were active who enjoyed the trust of Bascapè and his direct successors, among them the sculptors Giovanni d'Enrico and Cristoforo Prestinari and the painters Giovanni Battista and Giovanni Mauro della Rovere - known as the Fiammenghini -, Pier Francesco Mazzucchelli, called Marazzone, and Antonio Maria Crespi. The latter came from the Crespi Castoldi family; his origins from Busto Arsizio earned him the nickname "il Bustino" as an artist. In the second half of the 17th century, the sculptor Dionigi Bussola worked at the Sacro Monte. He was previously the head sculptor at the Milan Cathedral . The brothers Carlo Francesco and Giuseppe Nuvolone (Chapels X and XVII) were also Milanese. From the end of the century the painter Stefano Maria Legnani worked; In the first half of the 18th century, other Milanese artists were added, the sculptor Carlo Beretta and the painter Federico Bianchi.

Next to the church are two monastic buildings, one of which was originally intended for the Capuchin convent. This went into private ownership after the Napoleonic era. A Franciscan convent lives in the other monastery and looks after the pilgrimage site.

Chapels

The twenty chapels is the rendering of the life of St. Dedicated to Francis.

Arrangement of the chapels
I. Birth of St. Francis XI St. Francis receives the indulgence privilege for the portiuncula
II The crucified one speaks to St. Francis in the Church of San Damiano XII Christ dictates to St. Francis the rule of the order
III St. Francis takes the vow of poverty in the hands of the bishop XIII For the sake of humility, St. Lead Francis naked through the streets of Assisi
IV St. Francis hears the mass XIV St. Francis meets the Sultan of Egypt
V The clothing of the first disciples of St. Francis XV St. Francis receives the stigmata on Monte Verna
VI (Apse) St. Francis sends the brothers to preach
(ship) The miracles confirm the sermon 		XVI The seriously ill Francis returns to Assisi shortly before his death
VII Innocent III. confirms the rule of the order of St. Francis and his first companions XVII The death of St. Francis
VIII St. Francis appears to the brothers in a dream, disappearing on a chariot of fire XVIII The grave of St. Francis
IX The clothing of St. Clare XIX The miracles at the saint's tomb
X The victory of St. Francis on temptations XX The canonization of the saint

bibliography

  • Luigi Zanzi, Paolo Zanzi (a cura di), Atlante dei Sacri Monti prealpini , Skira, Milano, 2002, p. 91
  • Elena de Filippis, Fiorella Mattioli Carcano, Guida al Sacro Monte di Orta , Omegna, 2001

Web links

Commons : Sacro Monte d'Orta  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 45 ° 47 ′ 51.8 "  N , 8 ° 24 ′ 39.7"  E