A secret Renaissance jewel hidden a stone throw from the Duomo, the tiny church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro is the place where the architect Bramante could unveil his talent for perspective he had probably learnt by Piero della Francesca.
The architect was challenged by the narrow space squeezed between other buildings right in the centre of Milan.
He resolved the problem with an amazing optical illusion transforming the small space of the presbytery, about 3 feet of space (97 centimeters), into an apse many meters deep.
Can’t’ you believe it? Come and see with your own eyes.
Do you know that Bramante worked many times shoulder to shoulder with Leonardo da Vinci in Milan? They were both working at Santa Maria delle Grazie and in Vigevano, a lovely village a few miles from Milan.
The reputation of Bramante was so high that when he left Milan, Giulio II the pope assigned him the task to design the Basilica di San Pietro in Rome.
The presbytery by Bramante in the Church of San Satiro: it’s actually a few centimeters deep, picture by MilanoArte
Details
| Private guided tour | Tours can be done in Italian, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian and many more languages on demand. |
| Duration of the tour | Tour of the church is about 1 hour and a half but can be easily fit into a classic city tour. Great if combined with a tour of the Duomo. |
| Included in the tour | Private guided tour. |
| Maximum number of partecipants | To be verified according to Covid-19 regulations. |
| How to book the guided tour | Contact us and tell us number of people, date and timing. |
| Skip the line | Being off the main touristic routes hese places are not crowded but need special procedures for booking. We take care of all of them in order to provide you with the best experience. |
Want to discover more little hidden jewels in Milan?
Brera and its neighborhood
The vineyard of Leonardo da Vinci
San Maurizio al Monastero
Milan Street art
Leave a Reply