Frescoes in Val Venosta

 We recently took a short break in Val Venosta. We saw lots of interesting places, that we missed on our last visit. I managed to add a couple of locations to my Romanesque project. 

We broke off our journey to our hotel in Glorenza, near Merano to climb the steep hills above the valley, to visit Grissiano, an isolated village, with just a few houses. San Giacomo, is perched on the summit of a rocky outcrop. This now lonely place was once an important resting place on the pilgrim road to Santiago Compostela. 

The frescoes inside of the church date back to 1220. The most interesting fresco, depicts a biblical story, with the Dolomites as a backdrop.  

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Giacomo, Grissiano, BZ

San Procolo, on the outskirts of Naturno, was a place I really wanted to see. It is now part of a small museum, and you have to pay to enter.

This Church is said to contain some of the oldest frescoes in the Germanic world. They are certainly rather charming. We see a saint on swing, the cartoonish herd of cows with a dog, and a procession of wide eyed women, proceeding to the altar. The artist certainly had a sense of fun. At a higher level we see some later Gothic works. 

I had a quick look around the modern museum, which was a nice bonus.

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

San Procolo, Naturno, BZ

Lake Como Romanesque

After finishing a site meeting in Como, I had time to explore some Romanesque monuments on Lake Como, that I have wanted to explore for some time. The lake was crowded, but the monuments were mostly deserted. 

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, is on the outskirts of Como, next to the railway sidings. The present building dates from 1095. It has like all these churches, been modified over the centuries, and was restored to the Romanesque style in the la Ninetieth Century. Entering the building, we see the two column capitols with two cats staring down at us. A window on the Apse, also depicts a ferocious cat. 

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

The interior is very simple, plain and elegant, but one is immediately struck by the frescoes at the end of the church. I liked the Three Kings, sharing a bed, with an angel telling them to go. 

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

Basilica di Sant'Abbondio, Como

The Twelfth Century "Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio", in Gravedona, at the North end of the lake is worth fighting through the horrific traffic on the narrow road to reach. It served as a Baptistry as well as a church. The walls of this building are over two metres thick at the base. It is in a lovely location by the lake.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

Chiesa di Santa Maria del Tiglio",Gravedona.

The Last place I managed to fit in on my Architectural tour of Lake Como, is the splendidly isolated Abbazia di Piona, like many religious buildings it is in a wonderful spot on the lake. It was founded in the Twelfth Century, and is mostly late Romanesque. 

The outstanding part of the complex is the Cloisters, with some nice decorated Column capitals. The church is not rectangular, but grows narrower as it proceeds towards the Apse, to give an optical illusion of space. The Cloisters are irregular too.

One of the monks saw me taking pictures, and stopped to show me some little details that I would have missed, including the builders initials carved on the last column to be completed. 

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona. The initials of the builder

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

Abbazia di Piona

For this series of pictures I used my Nikon 24PC and a Laowa 15mm shift lenses. Details were shot on a Z28-400, which is brilliant for this task. It was a good day. I used my tripod for these shots and in this and the other places, nobody objected.