Church of San Bernardino Alle Ossa

The Church of San Bernardino Alle Ossa in Milan is known for its crypt chapel, fragments of the walls of which are lined with many human skulls and bones.

In 1145, a hospital was built near the Basilica of St. Stefano Maggiore. The cemetery next to the church was overcrowded. Then in 1210, a special room was built to house bones from the cemetery. Later in 1269, the church of San Bernardino was built here.

In 1642, the bell tower of the Basilica of St. Stefano collapsed on the crypt and church. All the buildings were destroyed. It was decided to reconstruct the complex, starting with the foundation. The work was completed in 1695. The church building was made in the Baroque style, had a single nave, an altar of marble and two chapels. The dome of the new church of San Bernardino was painted by the Venetian painter Sebastiano Ricci between 1693 and 1694.

In 1750, the church was enlarged by architects Giovanni Andrea Biffi and Carlo Giuseppe Merlot. In the chapel on the right is the family tomb of the descendants of Christopher Columbus.