On St. Joseph’s Day, we want to celebrate all dads!
We introduce you to an ancient building, now known as St. Joseph Door (Porta S. Giuseppe), which is located right next to Palazzo Riccamboni in Riva del Garda.
In order to do that, we gladly host the writing of our historian and friend Maria Luisa Crosina, to whom our thanks go.
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St. Joseph’s Door – Church of Discipline (or St. Mary of Mercy or St. Joseph’s Church)
Door or church?
What you walk through as if you were in a tunnel is actually one of the oldest religious buildings in town.
The eight-pointed cross rising on the bell tower refers to the hospitaller order of the Knights of Malta; in the 15th century the care of the church was entrusted to the confraternity of the Battuti. The hospital (a parchment informs us that in 1275 it was inhabited by a hermit) was added to it in very ancient times and it remained in use until the early 1900s. Church and hospital underwent many renovations over the centuries; in the 1700s the church was enlarged, taking on its present form with a classical facade, marble columns and a fresco on the vault ceiling by Bartolomeo Zeni. In 1807 the confraternity was suppressed by the Bavarian government, and in 1914 the church was used as a military warehouse.
Left to decay for many years and used in various ways, the building was consolidated and, gutted, was transformed into the current passageway.
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Now, the next time you pass through St. Joseph Door in Riva del Garda, look up and observe the details.
During the summer, you might find yourself under St. Joseph Door listening to a concert or a reading, attending a book presentation, watching a play or puppet show, admiring a street performer; or simply seeking shelter from a sudden summer storm.
Then continue: go down Via Florida and look at the palaces (including Palazzo Riccamboni on your right side) and reach Piazza delle Erbe; a few steps and you will reach the lake, Lake Garda.