Church of Santissimo Corpo di Cristo
Church of Santissimo Corpo di CristoVia Giovanni Piamarta, 9 - Brescia
The Church of Santissimo Corpo di Cristo, or of the Most Sacred Body of Christ, also commonly referred to as San Cristo, stands on Via Giovanni Piamarta, at the top of the steps connecting Via Musei to the city's castle.
Although its full name is Santissimo Corpo di Cristo, everyone in Brescia calls it San Cristo. Wrong, yes, but affectionate.
HISTORY
Founded in the 15th century by the Jesuati, on land donated by the Martinengo family, it’s one of the most striking churches in the city. The complex, complete with its three cloisters, has survived almost intact.
In the 16th century, Benedetto da Marone filled it with frescoes, covering the walls, presbytery and apse; everything depicts salvation through the Body and Blood of Christ. The images are so powerful, the church has earned itself the nickname the Sistine Chapel of Brescia. Romanino also contributed, with a Last Supper and a polyptych.
Then came the Council of Trent and the hand of Pietro Maria Bagnadore, who enlarged the church with three Baroque chapels. After the suppression of the Jesuati, the complex passed to the Reformed Franciscans, and later to the Xaverian Missionaries, who still look after it today.
Between wars, transformations and 19th-century restorations that had covered everything up, it was only in 1957 that the church began to show its true face again. The frescoes have been revealed again in all their glory. And with them, a living piece of Brescian history.
San Cristo isn’t just a church. It’s a painted story. And it has never stopped talking.
THE STRUCTURE: INTACT AND EMBELLISHED WITH FRESCOES
The church of the Santissimo Corpo di Cristo is unique in Brescia: its structure has survived almost intact, as if untouched by time.
It features a brick and Botticino marble façade, majolica arches, and a Renaissance portal that is quintessentially Lombard, probably by the Rodari family of Lugano. Embellishing it are frescoes attributed to Paolo Caylina the Elder and the young Moretto.
Inside, the nave is surmounted by a cross vault with Gothic ribs and a rare endonarthex, virtually impossible to find elsewhere in the city. On the right are the three chapels by Pietro Maria Bagnadore: in the centre, the chapel of the Nativity is a small masterpiece complete with a dome, a wood and mother-of-pearl altar, frescoes and mannerist paintings. The other two chapels are dedicated to the Passion and Franciscan saints, with decorations that mix the 17th century and 19th century interventions.
