Besso is a quarter of the city of

Lugano Lugano ( , , ; ) is a city and municipality within the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. It is the largest city in both Ticino and the Italian-speaking region of southern Switzerland. Lugano has a population () of , and an u ...

, in the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

canton of Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts and its capital city is Bellinzo ...

. It forms the part of the city which is uphill of

Lugano railway station Lugano railway station () is the main railway station of the city of Lugano, in the Swiss canton of Ticino. The station is on the Gotthard railway and is also the terminus of the Lugano Città–Stazione funicular. The metre gauge Lugano–Pon ...

, and is separated from the city centre by that station and its rail approaches. Besso was developed as a residential area in the late nineteenth century, driven by the opening of the railway in 1882. By 2011, it had a population of 4,993. Road access to the city centre is via a tunnel under the railway line, whilst access on foot is also possible using the station pedestrian subways, and thence the

Lugano Città–Stazione funicular The Lugano Città–Stazione funicular, ''Funicolare Lugano Città–Stazione'', or ''Sassellina'', is a funicular railway in the city of Lugano in the Switzerland, Swiss canton of Ticino. The line's upper station is located within the Lugan ...

Trasporti Pubblici Luganesi Trasporti Pubblici Luganesi (TPL) is a public transport operator in and around the Swiss city of Lugano. Previously known as the Società luganese dei tramway elettrici, Tranvie elettriche comunali, Azienda comunale del traffico (ACT) and Aziend ...

(TPL) bus route 3 connects Besso to the city centre, operating four or more buses per hour, whilst TPL route 16 connects an inner terminus on the Besso side of the railway station to Muzzano on a less frequent basis. The station can be directly accessed from the Besso side. The administrative headquarters, and radio studios, of

Radiotelevisione svizzera di lingua italiana Radiotelevisione svizzera, officially Radiotelevisione svizzera di lingua italiana (; "Swiss Radiotelevision of the Italian Language"), shortened to RSI (formerly RTSI until 2009), is a subsidiary of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG SSR ...

(RSI), the Italian language Swiss TV and radio broadcaster, are in Besso. The former

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

, dedicated to Saint Carlo Borromeo, now houses the Swiss Italian Conservatory and the Swiss National Sound Archive. Besso's church of Saint Nicholas of Flüe dates from 1950 and was built, by the architect Giuseppe Antonini, as a votive church. The facade is decorated with a

mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

by Francois Romand Ribas, whilst the separate bell tower contains five bells. The interior is notable for a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

door by

Venanzo Crocetti Venanzo Crocetti (1913–2003) was an Italian sculptor. He was born in Giulianova, Abruzzo. In 1938 Venanzo Crocetti received the Grand Prize in the 19th Venice Biennale. "The Door of the Sacraments" of the St. Peter's Basilica Crocetti finished i ...

, a large ceramic by

Angelo Biancini Angelo Biancini (1911–1988) was an Italian sculptor. Room 10 of the Collection of Modern Religious Art, Vatican Museums is dedicated to Biancini. References 1911 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Italian sculptors 20th-century Italian ...

depicting four saints, and

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows by the Swiss artist

Willy Kaufmann Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Allen (basketball) (born 1949), American basketball player and d ...

. Besso is home to a

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

, an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

and a

middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

, as well as a branch of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training. The Parco Tassino is a

public park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

in the south-east of the quarter, famous for its display of

rose A rose is either a woody perennial plant, perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred Rose species, species and Garden roses, tens of thousands of cultivar ...

References

External links

*
Besso pages on City of Lugano web site
(in Italian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Besso Villages in Ticino Lugano Districts of Lugano