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Torno (Como, Italy): Church of Saint John the Baptist
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 The Church of Saint John the Baptist is the most important church in Torno. Of medieval origin, it is characterized by an irregular form and is famous for hosting an ancient nail that according to tradition belonged to the cross on which Jesus was crucified.
HISTORY
The existence on the site of a sacred Christian building already in Roman times is demonstrated by the existence of a sixth century plaque placed until the eighteenth century on the floor of the church and now preserved in the Civic Museum of Como. On the left wall of the first span of the church there is a copy of his.
Then there is a legend according to which the Lombard Queen Teodolina would have donated to the Church of San Giovanni precious sacred vestments.
The most important legend, however, is the one linked to the famous relics hosted in the Church. Acording to tradition a German bishop, on his return home in 1099 after the first crusade, deposited in the Church of Saint John the Baptist one of the nails used in the crucifixion of Christ and the remains of one of the Innocents trucided by Herod, after understanding that the strong wind which prevented him from resuming the trip would not cease until he did it.
The first document concerning the church dates back to 1208.
Within the church, on the second arc of the nave, the date 1494 is reported, above the rose window that of 1496. These are dates related to the most important restorations and enlargements, those that led the church to have the general structure that It has today.
In 1515 Torno, at that time a very wealthy town, was sacked by the Swiss, in 1522 by the Como army. During these lootings, also the churches were plundered and damaged.
The bell tower in 1592 still had a pointed coverage. In 1776 it was hit by lightning. During the subsequent restorations, the bell cell was modified and the roof was modified to the current forms.
Other restorations of the bell tower took place in 1960, during which some previously walled openings were restored.
In 1889 there were restoration works that led the church to its current form. In particular, the plaster was removed from the facade and the bell tower and some changes to the portal were made, with the addition of the statues of the Annunciation on the sides of the lunette, with that of the Madonna in fact moved there from the niche to the right of the portal in which there is now a headless statue.
STRUCTURE
Regarding the planimetry the church has an irregular structure and from the point of view of the style it's a mix of Romanesque and Gothic.
In fact not only the presbytery and the back wall have an orientation that does not coincide with that of the main body, but even the right wall bends towards the outside exactly halfway through the nave, so that the church widens towards the bottom.
Looking at the facade from the inside (from the outside it's hardly recognizable) it becomes evident how the rose window is not centered but is a little moved toward the right wall.
All these irregularities are probably due to the stratification of changes made over the centuries.
As for the style, the church contains both Romanesque elements, like the full walls with very few windows, and Gothic elements, like in particular the arches of the nave, pointed acute, although the tip is barely recognizable, and to which correspond externally buttresses on the left and external arches connected to the adjacent building to the right.
The church is a single nave, with a single apse. The latter has a polygonal structure, but inside, on the bottom, it appears semicircular. The nave is divided into six spans (plus the span corresponding to the presbytery). The sacristy is located on the bottom left. There is no transept.
On the right two lateral entrances today walled are visible from the outside.
On the left outdoor wall there are numerous tombstones, in line with the fact that on that side the church looks towards the nearby cemetery.
The bell tower in stone has a typical Romanesque structure, with the side walls divided into panels decorated above with hanging arches and openings of larger size proceeding upwards (first three levels without openings, fourth level with walled monofor, fifth and sixth level with a mullioned window on each side.
The church portal in marble constitutes one of the most relevant elements of the church. It was built at the end of the fifteenth century and is attributed to the Rodari brothers. It includes two parts. The lower part, with a thick base, includes the actual door. Around the latter there is first frame with only geometric decorations. On the sides there are then two pilasters with each three niches stacked and inframed by cherub heads. In the three left niches there are, from below, statues of San Rocco, Saint Catherine and St. Paul. In those on the right San Sebastian, St. Lucia and St. Peter. Even more externally there are a bas-relief and above it a further niche. On the left the bas-relief depicts the Visitation and the niche hosts an allegorical statue of faith. On the right the bas-relief depicts the beheading of St. John the Baptist while in the niche there is a headless statue with no specific known meaning.
The upper part of the portal, separated from the lower one by a rich entablature with decorative themed bas-reliefs, includes the large lunette. Within this there is a bas-relief depicting the baptism of Christ with, on each side, a couple of angels. The frame of the lunette is divided into segments with depictions of prophets and sibyls. On the sides of the lunette there are the two statues of the Annunciation while at the apex there is that of the blessing Eternal Father who holds the sphere of the world.
The interior of the church is not very bright, since there are only two rectangular windows on the sides of the presbytery and, on the facade, the rose window and a window beside it.
In the right wall of the first nave there is a niche that acts as a baptistery.
Next to it there is the staircase leading to the chorempore on the counterface. The chorempore hosts an organ made in 1899 by the Mascioni company.
The oldest frescoes of the church, dating back to the period between fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, are found in the nave:
- On the right pillar of the fourth arch, unfortunately now very faded, a St. Bernardino from Siena .
- On the left wall of the sixth span, inside a band frame, a Madonna with Child on the Throne and a St. John Baptist.
- On the right wall, very deteriorated, a St. Christopher
The other most relevant part of the Church is represented by the presbytery. It is separated from the nave by a gate and includes the apse with the main altar and two side altars. The wall of the presbytery, open in three round arches chapels, is completely occupied by a large fresco depicting a paradisiacal scene, with clouds in the sky populated by putti and musician angels and with God the father in the center. It is not clear when this fresco was painted, perhaps in the sixteenth century, perhaps in the following century. Some experts attribute it to one of the Fiamminghini, Giovanni Mauro della Rovere. The two bases of the central arch are connected by a wooden beam on which a large wooden crucifix is located.
The coverage of the presbytery is made up of colorful cruise vaults richly decorated with stuccos and frescoes. The stuccos are baroque, the frescoes were instead redone in the nineteenth century. The ribs are highlighted by the stuccos and in each panel there is a mistilinear stucco frame. In the frames of the central vault are represented the Trinity, the Madonna with Jesus and John, Mary child with the parents, praising angels. In those of the left vault there are the four evangelists, while of the frescoes in the frames of the right vault only one, depicting a couple of angels, is still visible.
The various intradosses are also divided by stucco frames into panels containing representations of saints, angels, sibyls and decorative motifs.
To be noted also the angels-caryatids at the base of the central vault and the putti at the base of the lateral ones. On the lateral walls of the central vault, higher than the sides, there are finally frames with epigraphs supported by putti.
The wall of the apse has no decorations. The apsidal basin is instead decorated in the same style as the vaults of the presbytery, although in this case the stuccos are only simulated. One of the panels depicts the silver cross which houses the Holy Nail. The other panels depict medallions containing the symbols of passion.
The lower part of the side walls is occupied by the choir stalls.
From the altar extend dividing walls equipped with two doors that delimit the room where the relics are kept. At the back of the apse there is a large niche containing a statue of 1807 in painted wood depicting St. John the Baptist.
The left side altar is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary and has a rich retable with an architectural structure in the center of which, in a niche, there is a recent statue from 1979 of the Virgin, a copy of the stolen original. Above, in the center of the broken tympanum, a pelican is depicted, a symbol of Christ who sacrifices himself to redeem humanity.
All around the altar runs a large band with the mysteries of the rosary depicted inside medallions.
On the side wall next to the altar there are five paintings showing episodes from the life of the Virgin.
The right side altar is dedicated to St. Bartholomew and has the same structure as the left one. Instead of the pelican, however, in this case there is a vase of flowers and the band surrounding the altar contains decorative elements and frames with angels.
The altarpiece, attributed to one of the Fiamminghini, Giovanni Mauro della Rovere, depicts St. Bartholomew being flayed alive. On the right wall there are images of saints.
The pulpit, on the left at the arch between the fifth and sixth spans, originally appeared to be supported by cherubs, which were however unfortunately stolen.
The Via Crucis paintings are by the German friar Joseph Zürchner, who painted them in 1756.
Various canvases hang on the walls of the church. In particular a Conversion of Saul attributed to Giovan Battista Trotti known as il Malosso (1555-1619) and a canvas attributed to Vincenzo Campi (1526-1591) probably originally part of a larger composition (it is perhaps one of the two doors of an organ).
Categories: Places of historical value of artistic value
piazza San Giovanni, 22020 Torno CO |
Further pictures of Church of Saint John the Baptist in the section Photography |