Pre-trip work!

 March 23, 2025    **Santa Maria del Monte**

On a mountain, sits an old little town that has 15 chapels leading up to it. The idea came from the Franciscans during the 1490's as an alternative pilgrimage to the Holy Land since current political events made travel to the Middle East impossible. We cheated a bit by taking a bus to the first chapel and hopped on a funicular for a ride up the mountain. 

We had the funicular to ourselves.

The other car coming down.

Almost to the top.

At the top, we took in the views. It was sprinkling on and off.

From there, we went into the Baroffio Museum which was the collection of Giuseppe Baroffio that he donated upon his death in 1929. Most of the paintings date from the 15th-17th century. Here are some of my favorites.

This painter loved details! 

Here is a closer look. 

Jesus falls under the cross, painted in the 16th century

Card players, 17th century

We have been playing a lot of cards on this trip!

Madonna and Child, 17th century

Part of the museum was a descent to a crypt below the current glorious church. (More on that in a minute.) The crypt excavation revealed the original parts of the church which date back to the 5th century! Here are some frescos from the crypt.

Here's the inside of Saint Mary Sanctuary of Monte Varese, the current church which dates from the 9th and 10th centuries, through a "radical intervention" of the years 1472-1476, to the present.

From the back of church.

This wooden statue of Mary and baby Jesus dates back to the 4th century!

Outside the church were some more views. 

Now we get to my favorite part of the day! We learned about an artist I had not heard of before. A talented man by the name of Lodovico Pogliaghi 1857-1950. He was hired to help with a project on the mountain and fell so much in love with the area, he bought some land and built a house/workshop for himself and his wife. Inside his house, he designed different themed rooms that housed much of his art collection. Also, a huge studio for his artistic creations. He worked on the house until he died, leaving some unfinished frescos on the walls. BUT, here's the big wow-sy thing! He was commissioned to create the main bronze doors of the Duomo in Milan and his prototype is in his workshop! Full size! They are beautiful and the museum guide told us the details of the doors are much better than the bronze ones in Milan.

Lodovico Pogliaghi

A Bernini sculpture prototype less than 24" high. We don't know where the final one is.

A Ming Dynasty vase (1368-1644) right before Rod tripped into it and broke it. (Kidding)

Unfinished frescos sketched out by Pogliaghi.

See where he left off around the ceiling?

Some of his collection.

He made the angel candle holder in the foreground and the alabaster window in the background was payment for a lavish bathroom Pogliaghi created and installed for a client from the Middle East. 

The ceiling of the afore mentioned bathroom.

Now, for the big finish of the Pogliaghi house! These are the prototype of the Duomo bronze doors in Milan. Clare was given permission to play the piano by the museum staff. She played what she had memorized since she wasn't packin' any piano music in her pocket! 😊 

https://youtu.be/LqR5uTUneJ0

Clare

Can you see the detail?

I will pop in some pictures of Pogliaghi's gardens.

Grace

We finished with a stop at the final chapel at the top, some lunch, some monkey-ing around, and a final look at the view. We rode the funicular down, saw some wild boars in the woods and caught the bus back to the villa. A very good day!

The final chapel of the pilgrimage.

Making tiny hearts with their fingers.

Lunch time.

Monkey-ing around!

We are up above the final chapel where Grace, Paul, and Clare were making tiny hearts with their fingers.

Clouds rolling in over the mountains.