Cantù, Basilica of San Vincenzo in Galliano

On the outskirts of Cantù there is the Galliano ecclesiastic centre, made up of the Basilica of San Vincenzo and of the Baptistery of San Giovanni. According to legend, the basilica was built on the ruins of an ancient pagan temple around VIth century A.D., however, the first documentation that confirms the existence of the church refers to its consecration in the XIth century when Ariberto da Intimiano was its caretaker. He was to be the future Archbishop of Milan who was responsible for its extension and decoration. The church of San Vincenzo owes its cycle of frescoes on the nave walls to him, which even if partially destroyed, represent one of the best pictorial sequences of the period in northern Italy. In the following centuries the Basilica was slowly abandoned to the point that it was deconsecrated and transformed into a farmhouse during the nineteenth century. In recent times careful restoration has brought it back to its ancient splendour. Inside there is a raised presbytery under which an ancient crypt remains. The apse has wonderful frescoes such as the magnificent “Maestà del Cristo, tra Santi, Profeti e Arcangeli” (The Majesty of Christ among Saints, Prophets and Archangels) and in the lower part, episodes from the life of San Vincenzo. The frescoes on the right-hand walls of the nave tell the stories of Sansone and San Cristoforo, even though some episodes are missing.
The Baptistery, situated on the right hand side of San Vincenzo, is a complex building probably built in the XIth century,with a subsequent building pronaos and covered by an octagonal lantern. The site still has a baptismal font in the centre, made from a large millstone from Roman times for the baptismal rites of immersion.