Perched on a hill in the centre of the village, the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, once attached to the structures of a castrum and therefore also known as Santa Maria in Castello, or \u2018Santa Maria in the Castle\u2019, overlooks the entire village of Adro. Until the 15th century, Santa Maria Assunta was part of the parish of Erbusco, from which it managed to gain independence during the 15th century. Perhaps to mark its newfound independence, the entire complex was rebuilt in a new and more spacious form: from 1505, the date on which the foundation stone was laid, what remained of the medieval castle was demolished and the church was rebuilt; it served as the parish church until it was replaced, in the 17th century, by the new parish church of San Giovanni Battista.<\/p>\n
The interior of the church, consecrated in 1522, displays the typical features of Lombard parish church architecture, with a spacious single nave capable of accommodating a large number of worshippers, punctuated by pointed-arch transoms and crowned by a ceiling of wooden beams and decorated terracotta tiles.<\/p>\n
The entire chancel, the focal point of the whole sacred space, is dedicated to the church\u2019s patron saint, the Virgin of the Assumption, and to her earthly life, the account of which is to be found in the Apocryphal Gospels. The side walls feature five panels on each side. Among these, the Expulsion of Joachim from the Temple, the Nativity and the Death of the Virgin stand out; these episodes, like an illustrated book opened before the faithful, are accompanied by explanatory inscriptions. Completing the narrative, the back wall features the iconography of the Assumption and the Coronation of the Virgin. The decoration of the dome, on the other hand, is organised across two registers, in accordance with Renaissance iconographic tradition. The first register features the figures of the Apostles, arranged around the Virgin\u2019s now-empty tomb. Their gaze is fixed upwards, where the miracle of the Assumption is taking place and, at the same time, her Coronation by God, depicted in his Trinitarian form. Suspended on a curtain of clouds, the Virgin is surrounded by angelic musicians, clad in colourful robes and holding various instruments.<\/p>\n
On the vault\u2019s ribs, a second painter depicted the figures of the four Evangelists, drawing on a renowned model: the engravings by Agostino dei Musi (c. 1490 \/ after 1536) based on a design by Giulio Romano, the celebrated artist trained in Raphael\u2019s school who, in nearby Mantua between 1524 and 1534, was responsible for the architecture and frescoes of Palazzo Te. It is to him that we owe the perfect anatomical rendering and the daring poses of the Evangelists, who appear to be riding the clouds suspended in the sky whilst they are intent on compiling their respective Gospels.<\/p>\n
But the hallmark of a discerning patron, who did not hesitate to commission artists versed in the latest developments of the great Renaissance masters, is also evident in the nave: here, the massive piers, upon which the arches rest, projecting from the side walls, create space for side chapels, which were covered with devotional paintings within a short space of time. On the right-hand wall, the entire third bay is occupied by an imposing false polyptych, which rises higher than the wall itself, extending over a portion of the ceiling: the painter, fully versed in the language of perspective, has been identified by the conventional name of the Master of the Osservanza, because the entire polyptych, created in years when, in the Brescia area, the profound crisis caused by the Protestant Reformation was already being felt, represents a veritable manifesto of Catholic orthodoxy, based on the exaltation of the Eucharist and on the figures of Peter and Paul as the pillars of the Church.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":738,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categorie_arte":[418],"comuni":[88],"class_list":["post-5139","arte_e_cultura","type-arte_e_cultura","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categorie_arte-parish-churches-and-sanctuaries","comuni-adro"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n