Church of Santa Maria del Carmine

The Church of Santa Maria del Carmine is a beautiful church in Milan, located in Piazza del Carmine, in the Brera district.

SHORT HISTORY

In 1268, the Carmelites settled near the Castello Sforzesco, where, starting from the 14th century, they began to build their convent and an adjoining church, which was destroyed by fire in 1330.

The current church was built beginning with 1339 on a project by Fra Bernardo from Venice. The works were completed in 1446 by the architect Pietro Antonio Solari.

As soon as it was finished, the vault of the church collapsed and, only three years later, the restoration work began.

In the 17th century, the presbytery was radically restored in Baroque style and assumed its current conformation. The current facade, built in 1880, is the work of Carlo Maciachini.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE

The facade of the church overlooks the square of the same name. Built in 1880 in a rich neo-Gothic style, it is the work of Carlo Maciachini, famous also for the design of the Monumental Cemetery of Milan.

The facade is divided by large pilasters, each surmounted by a Gothic canopy. Above the central portal, there is a mosaic lunette with the Madonna on the throne between Saint Simon Stock and an angel. Above the lunette, we can find a beautiful rose window.

On Via del Carmine, which runs to the right of the church, there is the facade of the right arm of the transept, characterized by the presence of two large pointed lancet windows in the lower part and a circular rose window in the upper one. Higher up, there are two mullioned windows. Also, on the lateral facade, there is an entrance door to the church, surmounted by a lunette with the Madonna and Child.

The interior of the church has a Latin cross plan, and is divided into three naves covered with a cross vault by powerful circular pillars alternating in terracotta and stone. Between the three naves and the apse, there is the transept, with an altar close to the left rear wall.

Along the two lateral naves and the transept, there are various chapels of different eras. The great Neoclassical high altar, work of Giovanni Levati, was built in polychrome marble in 1808.

HOW TO GET THERE

The closest Metro station is Lanza, located about 350 meters away, on the Metro Line 2. The closest tram stop is located in Via Cusani, about 140 meters away, on the tram Lines 2, 12 and 14.