San Felice del Benaco: Historic Sanctuary and Lombard-Venetian Frescoes

Along the western shore of Lake Garda, on the hills of Valtenesi overlooking the Salò Gulf, lies San Felice del Benaco. The town is named after an early Church martyr, whose relics have been kept since the late Renaissance in the donated church of Benedictine monk Padre Angelo Moniga, a native of the Benaco area.

Administrative and religious references

From an administrative standpoint, San Felice falls under the Province of Brescia. Religiously, like many other lakeside locations, it belongs to the diocese of Verona. About 500 meters from the center stands the ancient sanctuary of Madonna del Carmine.

The sanctuary and its history

The medieval building, rich in art treasures, is a popular pilgrimage and tourist destination. The church, built in 1452, was consecrated to «Santa Maria delle Grazie», with a particular reference to the mystery of the Annunciation.

Subsequently, the sanctuary was named «Madonna del Carmine» due to the presence of Carmelitani—the friars of Mount Carmel—who dedicated themselves with great zeal to religious and charitable activities. The Romanesque-Gothic church owes its fame not so much to its architecture but to its interior frescoes.

Restorations and frescoes

Thanks to the efforts of the Carmelite friars, the frescoes have been restored. These same religious, returning to the convent in the 1950s, brought them to light by cleaning the plaster, which had covered them for three centuries during the 1600s, a time marked by the plague.

Most of the frescoes, dating from the 15th and 16th centuries, are works by artists of the Lombard-Venetian school, with evident influences from Mantegna, Foppa, and Paolo Uccello. Regarding themes and subjects, since they lack a unifying artistic, religious, or iconographic thread and the authors are unknown, it is believed they were created by various artists inspired by the great painting of the Quattrocento.

The subjects of the frescoes

Some frescoes appear to be «ex voto», while others depict the lives of Carmelite saints, such as San’Angelo, who was killed during preaching in Licata, Sicily, upon returning from a trip to Jerusalem. The frescoes are embedded within the bays of the chapels that once decorated the church, whose altars were removed at the end of the 1700s.

Among these are the chapels of the Nativity, San’Angelo, the Saints Sebastian and Rocco, and Mater Gratiae. Beautiful frescoes also adorn the walls of the presbytery, the apse, and the sacristy.

The artistic value of the sanctuary

The Madonna del Carmine sanctuary in San Felice can be regarded as an «artistic jewel» of Benaco. It is one of the most beloved and visited sacred sites on Lake Garda.