Santuario della Madonna del Castello

It is nice to see inside but the opening hours are a little affordable! weekdays at 17:30 and holidays at 9 and 19 !!

During the Candlemas Festival candles are blessed and it is possible to visit the church and the ancient crypt.

Beautiful church built with various stratifications, a Romanesque crypt surmounted by a medieval parish and finally the church with a single Renaissance nave. The Romanesque ambo with the tetramorph and the Renaissance temple and frescoes are interesting. with the celebration of the masses therefore not very useful. I took advantage of the Candlemas festival which is celebrated here every year with solemnity throughout the day. It would be desirable that volunteers were given the opportunity to open the church for visits as already happens for other important sites in the country. agreement between the administration and the parish priest! You can also take an easy path through the greenery, the so-called ROMAN TRAIL which connects the 4 churches of Almenno. Easy and well signposted.

The architectural complex of the Sanctuary of Santa Maria di Castello (formerly the parish church of San Salvatore in Lemine) represents one of the most important historical testimonies of the Province of Bergamo. Unfortunately, due to the classic "Italian affairs", the complex does not have continuous opening hours and the only way to visit it is to go there one hour before the start of religious services (which take place in the summer period at 17.30 on weekdays, at 9 and 19 on holidays; in winter at 17 on weekdays, at 9 and 18 on holidays). I sincerely hope that the Public Administration and the Associations present in the area will be able to take the reins of the situation, in order to be able to adequately enhance the complex, as has already been happening for several years for other important nearby monuments.

This amazing church can only be visited in conjunction with religious services, an hour in advance. It consists of three stratified places of worship, from the crypt overlooking the river of the High Middle Ages to the fifteenth century Sanctuary, with a fabulous four-poster little temple behind the altar to protect the icon.

Very complex architectural complex built on a territory which, due to its strategic position on the Brembo river, was formerly occupied first by the Romans (remains of a Roman villa) and then by the Lombards. Currently the structure consists of a crypt of the VII - VIII century, with a rectangular plan with a row of 4 central columns supporting the irregular cross vaults, of the Pieve di San Salvatore (late VIII century early IX), of the Plant Sanctuary rectangular with a single nave. The altar, surmounted by a Renaissance temple, preserves the miraculous fresco of Romanesque dating representing the Madonna and Child found on April 26, 1506.

The Sanctuary is located in Almenno San Salvatore, municipality of Bergamo. Studies and research have brought to light the millennial history of this site. There was a Roman villa from the Augustan period and an altar dedicated to the God Silvano, currently preserved in the archaeological museum of Bergamo. The villa was most likely the residence of the court of the Roman Emperor and later occupied by the barbarians. In 1300-1400 there were many local wars, but in a miraculous way a painting of the Madonna and Child appeared (perhaps due to a settlement of the land). This event led to a reconciliation of the populations who decided to build a new Church. Therefore, the Sanctuary is a complex of churches from different eras: the 7th century Crypt, the 11th century Church of the Pieve di San Salvatore and the 16th century Sanctuary of Santa Maria del Castello. This church has a rectangular plan, consisting of a single nave which is in turn divided into four camps and three Gothic arches. The main altar is surmounted by a small octagonal temple. The Sanctuary preserves very old frescoes dating back to between 900 and 1500. Finally, under the painting of the Madonna there is another very ancient but practically impossible to bring it back to light. Every year on February 2nd the feast of the Madonna della Canderola is renewed, particularly felt by the local population and the surrounding areas.

The Sanctuary is one of the most interesting in the Bergamo area. It rises above the Brembo valley, not far from the point where it was crossed by the "Ponte della Regina". Its bell tower with white and gray bands is visible from a considerable distance. It incorporates three different places of worship, belonging to different eras. But before Christianity, it was a Roman sacred place (there was an altar to the god Silvanus) and there was a Roman villa. Below the Sanctuary, in a cave, the source creeps and then flows into the underlying "Roch Fountain" (to see!). The Church is part of the circuit of the former European Romanesque Antenna (today the Lemine Foundation). Its peculiarity is that it includes three churches: the crypt of the VII - VIII century, the church of the IX century (church of the Pieve, maintained until 1443, when it was abandoned due to continuous struggles between the Guelphs and Ghibellines) and the Sanctuary of 1590, following the discovery of a miraculous Marian icon. In the small crypt, in addition to two narrow mullioned windows, two deep oculi were made in 1703. The columns of the crypt itself are disproportionate in size for a rather small room; the columns themselves have no bases, so they certainly continue beyond the floor. The capitals, all different, show ancient crosses and phytomorphic motifs. Important relics are kept under the altar; the graffiti inscriptions left on the frescoes are interesting. In the upper church you can admire other frescoes and a magnificent ambo decorated with the symbols of the evangelists and motifs of Romanesque influence. The actual church of the Sanctuary (the first church you meet upon entering and the last one you leave on leaving), has a single nave and presents cycles of frescoes later on. The altar is picturesque, enclosed in a completely frescoed octagonal temple, which contains the iconography of the miraculous Madonna. Leaving and taking Vicolo del Santuario on the right of the building, you arrive at the "Roch Fountain" and a beautiful naturalistic area in front of the Brembo river, from which you can admire the rear part of the religious complex on the high cliff. N. B .: Crypt and church of the Pieve are currently being restored; only the first church (Sanctuary) can be visited. Images of the crypt and Romanesque church date from early 2020.