Sacro Monte di Ossuccio

Sitting in the hills above Lake Como at 400 meters above sea level, the Sacred Mountain of Ossuccio is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular pilgrimage. It faces the Isola Comacina and spreads out along a pathway sprinkled with chapels.

It is part of the Nine Sacred Mountains of northern Italy, which together are a UNESCO site, a religious expression from the Baroque period that saw a series of themed trails in the mountains with devotional chapels strung along them.

This one above Ossuccio was built around a miracle-giving statue in white marble of the Virgin Mary, found here by a deaf-mute child who was healed at the moment she touched it. The Sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin (Beata Vergine del Soccorso) was constructed in the 1500s, while the devotional chapels were built along the pathway in the 1600s.

About a kilometer from the sanctuary is the start of the Viale delle Cappelle (way of the chapels), with 14 distinct Baroque shrines spread along it, dedicated to "the mysteries of the holy rosary". They are adorned with stuccoes, frescoes, and many polychrome terracotta sculptures. The path culminates at the grand sanctuary with its view over the lake, looking at the enchanting isle of Comacina.

The chapels and decorations of masterpieces of local artisans' skill and represent an interesting ethnographic and folkloric tradition for the northern mountains and a symbol of their spiritual devotion.

The beauty and peacefulness of the place make it well worth a visit.

(See also the Sacro Monte di Ghiffa at Lake Maggiore.)