Chiesa di San Sepolcro

In the centre of Milan stands the Chiesa di San Sepolcro, a Catholic church founded in 1030 by Benedetto Ronzone. It began life dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and in 1100 Archbishop Anselmo da Bovision re-dedicated it to the Holy Sepulchre. The change came amid the fervour of the Crusades. The design was meant to echo the Anastasis in Jerusalem, a significant site for Christians.

The exterior dates from a late nineteenth century reconstruction by Gaetano Moretti and Cesare Nava. The architects chose a Romanesque style considered more in line with the church's medieval origins and made the two bell towers match. They also moved an earlier fresco by Bramantino inside. The interior, by contrast, keeps its Baroque style, with an atrium attributed to Francesco Maria Richino. Frescoes by Carlo Bellosio depict scenes of San Carlo at the Sepulchre and San Filippo Neri. Terracotta sculptures join them, including a depiction of the Last Supper and a triptych of Christ's death.

Below the church lies the crypt, which reopened to the public in 2016. San Carlo Borromeo prayed in it, and it also served as a burial place for prominent families and the Oblate Fathers. Descend and you walk on marble slabs from the Roman era, remnants of the forum that once stood here.