Santa Maria della Scala was a church dedicated to the

Assumption of the Virgin Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of whether Mary died or whether she was ra ...

and located in the center of Milan. It was erected in

Gothic style Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved from Romanesque ar ...

in the 14th century by

Beatrice Regina della Scala Beatrice ''Regina'' della Scala (1331 – 18 June 1384) was Lady of Milan by marriage to Bernabò Visconti, Lord of Milan, and politically active as the adviser of her spouse. Life Beatrice Regina was the youngest child of Mastino II della Sca ...

, wife of the Lord of Milan

Bernabò Visconti Bernabò or Barnabò Visconti (1323 – 19 December 1385) was an Italian soldier and statesman who was Lord of Milan. Along with his brothers Matteo and Galeazzo II, he inherited the lordship of Milan from his uncle Giovanni. Later in 1355, he ...

, and demolished in the 18th century to make way for a new theatre called Teatro alla Scala after her name.

History

Foundation (14th century)

The church was built on the site called della Case Rotte, where the ruins of the palace of the Della Torre family lay, demolished by Matteo Visconti after he had defeated them at the beginning of the 14th century. The church's construction began on September 7, 1381, with the groundbreaking ceremony attended by Regina Della Scala, the Milan archbishop Saluzzo, and the Visconti court. Beatrice della Scala died in 1384 after having recommended to her husband that she promptly complete her work. The church was consecrated in 1385. Initially known as Santa Maria alle Case Rotte, it later assumed the name of Santa Maria della Scala after the name of its founder. The building was erected in the Lombard Gothic style. The interior was divided into three naves, with vaults supported by four pairs of pillars. The façade was gabled and vertically divided into three sections, corresponding to the three internal naves. The portal opened in the central section, and a large

rose window Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in Gothic cathedrals and churches. The windows are divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery. The term ''rose window'' wa ...

above gave light to the central nave. Still above, there was a

mullioned window A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid sup ...

with trefoil arches and a central oculus. In correspondence with the lateral naves, two other small rose windows were on both sides of the central rose window. The naves of the church were oriented along the current

Via Manzoni Via Manzoni is a busy and fashionable street in the Italian city of Milan which leads from the Piazza della Scala north-west towards Piazza Cavour. Notable buildings include the Museo Poldi Pezzoli, the elegant Grand Hotel et de Milan, which was ...

. Seven buttresses, four of which corresponded to the four pillars of the inner bays, divided the outer lateral walls. The church had a bell tower polygonal with reinforced edges. Mullioned windows with trefoil arches and a central oculus opened the belfry.

Transformation in the 16th century

In the 16th century, the apse was rebuilt with polygonal architecture and reinforced corners, occupying the land behind the church. The apse space's increase allowed for the addition of an inlaid wooden choir, completed in 1560. Preserved until today, since it was transferred to the nearby church of San Fedele before the church's demolition, the choir had a horseshoe shape reproducing the apse's form.

Dismantling (18th century)

In 1776,

Empress Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position in her own right. She was the sovereig ...

confirmed the decision to demolish the Church of Santa Maria della Scala to build a new theater in that area. The decision seems to have also been determined by the precarious static conditions of the church, seriously compromised by a streamlet that flowed nearby. A series of activities for the passage of the canons to the nearby church of San Fedele and the preservation of frescoes, paintings, and sculptures kept in the church preceded the demolition of Santa Maria alla Scala. A fresco of the Virgin and Child was detached from the wall and transferred with other paintings on wood and sculptures to the church of San Fedele. The wooden choir was transferred to the church of San Fedele and adapted to its apse. Some other sculpture elements were transferred to the Sforza Castle Museum.

Today

No sign survives where the church once stood; only the theater's name retains its memory. The church's façade would have fronted Largo Antonio Ghiringhelli, where the entrance to the Scala Theater Museum stands. Several works of art transferred before the church's demolition can be visited at the church of San Fedele. Among these, the most important are a fresco of the Virgin with Child and two paintings: a Transfiguration by

Bernardino Campi Bernadino Campi (1522–1591) was an Italian Renaissance painter from Cremona, who worked in Reggio Emilia. He is known as one of the teachers of Sofonisba Anguissola and of Giovanni Battista Trotti (il Malosso). In Cremona, his extended family o ...

and a Deposition by

Simone Peterzano Simone Peterzano () was an Italian Mannerist painter. Born in Bergamo, he stressed his links to Venice where he probably trained. He is mostly known as the master of Caravaggio. Peterzano called himself a pupil of Titian and would sometimes sign ...

, a pupil of

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (also Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi da Caravaggio; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), known mononymously as Caravaggio, was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the fina ...

. A statue of a lying bishop, part of a funeral monument made by Bambaia, can be visited at the nearby San Fedele Museum.

References

Sources

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External links

Fedele Museum - Itinerary of Art and Faith''
{{Visconti of Milan Buildings and structures completed in 1381 Churches completed in the 1380s Former churches in Italy

Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...

1776 disestablishments Gothic architecture in Milan 14th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Demolished buildings and structures in Italy Buildings and structures demolished in 1776