Holiday apartment in Sabbio Chiese: Churches, Art and Rocca

Sabbio Chiese combines Romanesque churches, historic art, the Museo Enrico Morelli and the Rocca on the rocky promontory. The individual sights lead from medieval traces and traditional rural crafts to the Santuario Madonna della Rocca and the Rocca on the rocky promontory.

Romanesque Church and Medieval Traces

A special landmark is the Church of San Giovanni in Pavone. It is a Romanesque church and one of the oldest churches in Valle Sabbia. Traces of 14th-century frescoes have been preserved on the right-hand wall. The year 1372 is inscribed on the architrave; the year 1394 can be read in Gothic numerals on the stone holy-water basin. In this same church interior, traces of 14th-century frescoes thus meet the two years 1372 and 1394.

The Church of San Michele was built around the year 1000. The parish church houses a polyptych painted in the first half of the 16th century, depicting the Madonna and Child and the patron saints of the town’s various churches. A depiction of the Deposition of Christ recalls, in its iconography, a famous drawing by Raphael from 1507. The construction period around the year 1000 thus stands alongside works from the first half of the 16th century and the reference to Raphael’s 1507 drawing.

Crafts at the Museo Enrico Morelli

The Museo Enrico Morelli for rural civilization and crafts is located in the historic centre of Sabbio Chiese. It is housed in the former Church of San Nicola, on the slope leading to the Santuario Madonna della Rocca. The museum displays objects and tools from agriculture, livestock farming, textile crafts and the trades practiced in the valley. Agriculture, livestock farming, textile crafts and valley trades are thus brought together under one roof.

One of the vivid details is a loom at which visitors can watch demonstrations of woollen carpet making. The Museo Enrico Morelli therefore offers a concrete insight into the materials and working methods associated with rural life and the crafts of the valley.

Art in San Martino and Orientation at the Rocky Promontory

The Church of San Martino in Sabbio Sopra houses a polyptych executed on masonry, depicting the Virgin Mary and the saints who were venerated in the town’s religious history. The work was created in the first half of the 15th century and is one of three masonry polyptychs in the Province of Brescia.

The Rocca di Sabbio Chiese stands at the top of a rocky promontory in the town of Sabbio Chiese. A staircase with 107 steps leads to the entrance of the Santuario Madonna della Rocca. The 107 steps are a concrete factor for planning the day: access consists of climbing a staircase and therefore differs from visits to the churches or the museum.

More places for planning your trip: Carpenedolo, Campione Del Garda, San Vigilio, Offlaga, Colombare, Bagolino, Bedizzole, Ome.

To the higher-level travel overview: Brescia.