Rho, active center on a bank of the Olona river on the outskirts of Milan crossed by the course of the Lura and Bozzente streams, home of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sorrows, the Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin of the Sorrowsstupendous baroque – neoclassical jewel,a venerated marian destination elevated in 1923 by Pope Pius XI to Minor Basilica.
This important ecclesiastical building located on a large square near Corso Europa was originally erected on a chapel that was dedicated to the Madonna della Neve dating back to 1522 on its altar was placed a painting depicting a Pietà, the work of an unknown artist who according to historical documentation dated April 24, 1583 saw the Virgin Mary depicted in that work weeping with tears of blood.
It was from then that the Bishop of the Milanese Diocese Carlo Borromeo, who later became a saint, after having carried out some investigations concerning everything that happened, commissioned the well-known architect of Valsolda Pellegrino Tibaldi to build a Sanctuary with the laying of the first stone on March 6, 1584, the date on which the real building works were begun, despite the fact that at the beginning the parishioners of Rho opposed it as well as the Order of the Oblates and Pope Gregory XIV.
In October of the same year, St. Charles Borromeo, visiting Rho at the court of the influential Counts, Simonetta decided to intercede, finding a solution, mediating by ensuring that half of the donations and alms would reach the Confraternity of the Oblates, which was given the management of the control of the works in progress and the place would become the definitive residence of the Fathers of this Religious Order.
On the square of the churchyard you can a large, multinumeral bronze sculpture produced by the Barigozzi Foundry in 1884 following the design of the sculptor Francesco Barzaghi which depicts St. Charles Borromeo, a space on which during the Christmas period a nativity scene with silhouettes designed by Giuseppe Carsana is set up where the protagonists are life-size.
The majestic bell tower boasts a height of 75.0 meters with a concert of 10 bells in A Major produced in 1887 by the Barigozzi Company.
The building that houses the Order of the Oblates contains a meeting center, a library, the priests' rooms and various works of art including paintings by Bernardino Luini, Legnani, Lanzani, Fiammenghino, Vermiglio, Solario, Magatti, Danedi and a Via Crucis of 1749 engraved by Giandomenico Tiepolo.
You can linger on the majestic façade, a neoclassical masterpiece by the Viennese architect naturalized Italian Leopold Pollack, very active in the Milanese and Pavia areas, decorated with bas-reliefs of the same architectural style made by the Italian-Swiss sculptor from Rancate Grazioso Rusca, as well as two very large statues depicting prophets by the same Ticino artist.
Then visit of the interior developed on a Latin cross plan with a single nave and four chapels on the respective sides with a length of 74.0 meters and a transept of 43.0 meters, dimensions that make this Sanctuary one of the largest Basilicas in the region.
The dome reaches a height of 54.0 meters decorated with eight large windows and paired pilasters in Corinthian style, an excellent work developed by the Milanese architect Carlo Giuseppe Merlo between 1752 and 1764.
In the nave we can admire beautiful frescoes of the 19th century, works by the painters Luigi Morgari and Giuseppe Carsana who were assisted by the brothers Achille and Angelo Secchi as well as a magnificent work by the talented Parma artist Camillo Procaccini who painted the Martyrdom of St. Catherine.
Of considerable importance is the Chapel of San Giorgio which boasts a beautiful altarpiece of the 17th century developed by Giovanni Ambrogio Figino which depicts a legendary scene that immortalizes San Giorgio against the Dragon while the frescoes executed between 1614 and 1615 are master works of the great artist Pier Francesco Mazzucchelli known as Morazzonetag.
Continuation with the Baroque Chapel of San Carlo which boasts the decorations of Andrea Lanzani made in 1684, in the Chapel dedicated to San Giovanni Battista where you can appreciate an extraordinary altarpiece by another immense master or Giovanni Battista della Rovere, a Milanese artist better known as Fiammenghino.
In the Chapel that honors St. Joseph, the artistic imprint on the theme of frescoes is by Camillo Procaccini and his school, including the execution of a wonderful altarpiece depicting the Rest on the Flight into Egypt. Also of considerable artistic interest is the Chapel devoted to Sant'Anna with an eighteenth-century painting of the Saint attributed to Carlo Donelli known as Vimercati, a talented painter from Brianza, a faithful follower of Ercole Procaccini.
All the chapels are decorated in their upper sections with wonderful stucco reliefs including that of Sant' Ambrogio where there are wonderful works by Grazioso Rusca elaborated in 1806 while the plaster sculptures carved with the main thematic background San Carlo Borromeo, the Religion and San Luigi Gonzaga receiving communion are works by Pompeo Marchesi , artist from Saltrio in the province of Varese who was very active in the Napoleonic and Habsburg periods in Milan and its surroundings.
The splendid altar was developed in the 17th century although it was enlarged by Gaetano Moretti in the late nineteenth century splendidly decorated with beautiful marble statues by Antonio Carminati and bronzes, the latter made by Giovanni Lomazzi and Eugenio Bellosio and the seventeenth-century altarpiece by Cristoforo Storer.
The wooden choir dated 1747, a masterpiece by Antonio Maria Pozzi, is magnificent, while the other works in decorated wood, inlaid including pulpits and organs, are the work of Benedetto Cazzaniga. On the arch above the presbytery we can also admire a wonderful wooden Crucifix dated 1765, a work attributed to Giuseppe Antignati.
Time for your lunch, I recommend remaining in the traditional local cuisine first courses to choose between Risotto alla Milanese or Maccheroncini with Gorgonzola, second courses between Milanese cutlet with French Flakes or Roast Chicken Leg with Herbs with Steamed Spinach and Grana Padano Gratin.
The visit of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Sorrows is highly recommended to all those who love art, history in a place like Rho very close to Milan, opening authentic artistic masterpieces and enjoying a very pleasant day of tourism discovering an artistic treasure of immense importance.
Where to Stay | Recommended Accommodation
Hotel NH Milano Fiera
Italiana Hotels Milan Rho Fair
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