The Chiesetta di Sant'Anna, or Small Church of Saint Anne, is a Roman Catholic church located in San Damiano, a hamlet of Brugherio, in the Province of Monza and Brianza, Italy.

History

The church, known as "geseta de Sant'Anna", is located on the site of a ninth century church dedicated to

Saints Cosmas and Damian Cosmas and Damian ( ar, قُزما ودميان, translit=Qozma wa Demyaan; grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός, translit=Kosmás kai Damianós; la, Cosmas et Damianus; AD) were two Arab physicians in the town Cyrrhus, and were r ...

, itself attached to a monastery. During his pastoral visit in 1578, Charles Borromeo decided to demolish the building. In the eighteenth century the new church was built, consisting of a private chapel adjacent to the Villa Viganoni-Benavides, the summer residence of the Parravicini family during the nineteenth century. This was also demolished. The church was dedicated to

Saint Anne According to Christian apocryphal and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the canonical gospels. In writing, Anne's name and that of her husband Joachim come o ...

probably by Antonio Parravicini and his wife Isabella Blasi. They placed the marble altar painting of the ''Education of the Virgin'' that came from another church in Milan. In 1808 Isabella Blasi added two plaques of black marble at the sides of the altar. The first is a petition to Saint Anne recommending father Blasio, the second a memorial plaque for the death of her husband and father.

Architecture and arts

The nave is covered by a

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

, separated from the presbytery by a depressed arch with a Jesus's

monogram A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos. A series o ...

in its center, and floral motifs at the sides. The left aisle leads to the

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually located ...

, formerly used as a women's gallery, being accessible directly from the Villa. It underwent restorations, particularly of the five niches with murals consisting of

faux marble Faux painting or faux finishing are terms used to describe decorative paint finishes that replicate the appearance of materials such as marble, wood or stone. The term comes from the French word ''faux'', meaning false, as these techniques start ...

friezes with archways in turn decorated with golden stars. These niches contain two wooden statues of the Virgin and Child and

Saint Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers of ...

, and a crown and a scepter with the palm leaves of martyrdom in reference to saints and martyrs. One can also find paintings depicting the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The station ...

and two paintings of the

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

, as well as paintings of Saint Anne and Saint Joachim on the right and the

opposite. The restoration of the main door, windows and furniture was carried out under the supervision of Belle Arti.

History

Architecture and arts

References

Bibliography

External links