An ancient path led from Milan to Lake Maggiore. Where the foothills of the Alps began to rise and the land broke up into rugged, jagged terrain, one arrived at Arsago Seprio. In the Middle Ages, this village in the Seprio countryside was of great importance. In fact, it had been home to a parish church since the very beginnings of the Diocese of Saint Ambrose. A large ecclesiastical complex was subsequently built on this site, probably at the behest of Arnolfo II, Bishop of Milan between 998 and 1018, who had entrusted the work to the Comacine Masters. The Basilica of San Vittore, with its adjoining Baptistery and bell tower, remains one of the finest examples of Lombard Romanesque architecture to this day.
The Basilica of San Vittore in Arsago Seprio
The complex shines with austere simplicity, cloaked in the harshness of stone, powerful yet graceful, imposing yet spiritual. All around it, a landscape reminiscent of Arcadia stretches. The church of San Vittore features irregular yet skilfully arranged ashlars. These run along the perimeter walls, stripped of ornamentation and as essential as the deepest sacredness. The sobriety of the bare stone is enlivened only by bands of blind arches and two orders of single-light on the sides. From the openings in the gable-front façade, three windows crowned by round arches and the portal, a mystical light streams into the interior. Thus, the building reveals its basilical plan, with a nave and two side aisles with apses, and a raised chancel.
Slender columns, reused from lost Roman temples, stand in contrast to sturdy pillars. Some capitals, carved with phytoform motifs, seem to seek to grace, at least in part, the solemn and contemplative atmosphere. This is motionless, suspended between space and time. Originally, the church of San Vittore housed some frescoes. Centuries of neglect, followed by a layer of plaster applied during 20th-century restorations, have entirely buried any trace of them.
The bell tower, square and massive, was built using reused materials. A votive slab, dedicated to the god Jupiter, reveals some clues as to the origins of these weathered stones. Furthermore, the bell tower once had a belfry at the top. However, this was bricked up in 1872 and the bells were placed on the terrace.
The Baptistery and its symbolism
The Baptistery stands directly in front of the Basilica of San Vittore and rises like a sacred guardian, displaying a certain stylistic unity. Yet it is probably at least a century younger than the basilica. This is evident from the use of a more refined and mature Romanesque style. Here the spatial arrangement is skilful. The perspective proportions and the verticalism thrust display great harmony. The ashlars appear thicker and more finely finished. The alignment of the two buildings suggests a continuity of rites and worship from the church to the baptismal font. Certainly, the space separating the Baptistery and the Basilica is ephemeral, almost conceptual. The two buildings seem to be extensions of one another. Yet it is precisely these steps that separated the catechumens from baptism, the old man from the new, who was reborn for eternal life.
The building’s liturgical function also explains its octagonal shape, a symbolic reference to the final, endless day of the Resurrection, the eighth day, which marks the fulfilment of the first seven days of divine creation. The austere monumentality of the Baptistery is abruptly interrupted only at the lantern, which, rising towards the sky with graceful momentum, draws with it the deep arches, the round windows and the spherical dome. The Baptistery opens outwards through two portals, one on the northern side and the other on the southern. On the eastern side, however, a window that might be described as misaligned or out of place does not go unnoticed. In reality, ancient ritual meanings lie hidden behind this seemingly insignificant detail. Through this opening, in fact, those being baptised could observe the morning star at dawn on Easter Day, a symbol of rebirth in Christ.
Samuele Corrente Naso
References
Sheet of Lombardia Beni Culturali.
