Hermitage of St. Catherine
The province of Varese, with its rich heritage of art and culture, presents itself as one of the most fascinating destinations for religious tourism in Lombardy. Here, amid rolling hills and beautiful lake landscape, stand monasteries, abbeys and shrines, many dedicated to the Virgin, which not only serve as places of prayer but also offer a visual and spiritual experience without parallel. The Sacro Monte of Varese, with its fourteen picturesque chapels and renowned Marian shrine, stands out as a major landmark of faith and architectural beauty, attracting visitors from all over. Religious tourism is booming, able to combine spiritual quest with moments of reflection and meditation, enriching each visit with local culture and history.
Sacro Monte Unesco of Varese- Ph. Olivier Blitzblum/flickr
With the upcoming Jubilee of 2025 on the horizon, the Varese area is preparing to become an increasingly popular destination for those seeking not only natural and artistic beauty, but also an opportunity to connect with their spiritual dimension. In this context, religious tourism asserts itself as an important area of development, capable of enhancing an area rich in history, culture and faith.
The Sanctuary of Santa Maria del Monte and the Hermitage of Santa Caterina
At the top of Varese’s Sacro Monte, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, stands the Sanctuary of Santa Maria del Monte, which can be reached by walking the Via Sacra interspersed with 14 chapels of the Mysteries of the Rosary. The shrine, which is one of the Jubilee churches where every Christian can obtain a plenary indulgence for the remission of all sins, is an important place of Marian devotion, commissioned by St. Ambrose in the year 381 to celebrate the defeat of Arianism. Beyond its Renaissance façade are the splendid Baroque decorations of the Ghianda, the Lampugnani, the Prestinari and the Fiamminghino, with the frescoes in the dome and the naves framing works such as the highly venerated wooden statue of the Madonna. Not to be missed is the crypt of the sanctuary, where the remains of the former 9th century place of worship remain, with ancient burials and Roman and medieval artifacts.
Sacro Monte and the Sanctuary of Santa Maria del Monte – Ph. Marta Dionigi/flickr
Equally scenic is the Hermitage of Santa Caterina, built in Leggiuno overlooking Lake Maggiore in the 12th century by merchant Alberto Besozzi to thank the saint for surviving a shipwreck. This hermitage welcomes worshippers with the 14th-century Southern Convent, which then introduces them to the Convent of which the Danza Macabra frescoes can be appreciated. The church, flanked by a graceful 14th-century bell tower, houses the remains of Besozzi himself.
Interno dell’Eremo di Santa Caterina
The Shrine of St. Joseph
The Church of St. Joseph, born in the center of Varese as the oratory of the ancient confraternity of the Gonfalone and the Beata Concezione, today represents a small place of worship that, with its riot of works of art of profound religious significance, arouses awe and mysticism in the faithful. It enlightens with its sober late Baroque façade made in 1725 by Speroni: inside, it enchants with its sumptuous iconostasis in exquisitely carved wood, sublimated by the gilded statue of the Virgin Mary, in addition to the vault frescoed by Giovan Battista del Sole and the Old Testament depictions by Gherardini found in the choir.
A stone’s throw from Gallarate, in the village of Somma Lombardo, stands instead the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Ghianda, built in 1570 by Pellegrino de’ Pellegrini at the behest of St. Charles Borromeo. The church replaces the chapel that arose on the site of an apparition to a deaf-mute shepherdess of the Virgin among the branches of an oak tree. A tree-lined avenue leads to the shrine with its Renaissance façade, inside which are wooden statues, but above all frescoes and a canvas created by Michelino.
Somma Lombardo Castle – Ph. Gennaro Castiglia/flickr
The Church of St. Victor
Another place of worship of great importance in the Varese area is the Church of San Vittore, located right in the historic center of Varese as part of an architecturally extraordinary complex. The church was erected between the 16th and 17th centuries on the remains of an earlier 14th-century building. The facade has a neoclassical style, designed in the 1700s by Pollack: contrasting this is the adjacent baroque Bernascone bell tower, which has towered over the roofs of Varese from its 80 m height since the 1600s.
Not far away then is the 16th-century Baptistery of St. John, an ancient building that houses a very old baptismal font inside. Upon entering the church, one can admire in particular the wooden pulpits from the 1600s, a painting by Nuvolone depicting Abraham and Lot, canvases by Morazzone, and frescoes on the history and martyrdom of St. Victor on the choir walls and vault.
Church of St. Victor – Ph. Phil Beard/flickr
The chapels of the Church of San Vittore are true jewels of the seventeenth-century Lombard style, and among all of them the Magdalene Chapel with a marvelous altarpiece and the ancient Chapel of St. Martha where there is a valuable sculptural group on the deposition of Christ are to be appreciated. In the heart of the historic center of Busto Arsizio is the 16th-century Sanctuary of Santa Maria di Piazza. The exterior, by Antonio da Lonate, shows a vague Bramante style, with a loggia crowned by a tiburium complete with lantern and spires. What is most striking about this church is the statue of the Virgin and Child in the center of the apse, where, however, the Child is not in his Mother’s arms but is depicted in the act of descending from her knees. Equally beautiful are the 16th-century Polyptych of the Assumption and the faithful reproduction of the village of Crespi d’Adda.
St. Mary’s Square and the Shrine – Ph. gianfranco santeramo/flickr
