Basilica complex of Santa Maria Maggiore in Lomello

The basilica complex of Santa Maria Maggiore is located in the center of the municipality of Lomello and consists of the Baptistery of San Giovanni ad Fontes and the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

The Baptistery of San Giovanni ad Fontes dates back to the Lombard age. Small jewel in its harmonious forms, it was in fact built between the fifth and eighth centuries. Inside it preserves the ancient polychrome baptismal font, some fragments of the contemporary fresco decoration and part of the original flooring ad opus sectile.
Having become a county seat with the rise to power of Charlemagne, Lomello lived its period of maximum splendor under the Palatine Counts, who established their home here starting from 1024. They promoted the construction of a new basilica dedicated to the Virgin Mary - the monumental complex we still encounter today - which took the place of the pre-existing church.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore was in fact built between 1025 and 1040. It is a shining example of proto-Romanesque architecture, with its large diaphragm arches and with a very important decorative stucco cycle from the Ottonian era. This church structure attracts and impresses above all for its evident structural asymmetry and for the first three “ruined” spans. According to legend  the Devil, wanting to prevent the marriage between the Catholic Teodolinda and the Arian Agilulfo, unleashed a violent storm that destroyed the church. However, the queen's prayers and great faith induced the Lord to force the lowest being to rebuild the church in one night, by the first light of the morning. The works of the Devil and of his helpers, however, are never perfect...