The parish church of Santo Stefano stands at the centre of Piazza Santo Stefano, the hamlet of Cernobbio about 300 metres above the lake: it has a long history, from the parish of 1563 to the consecration in 1785 and the enlargement of 1931, and the Sant’Abbondio chapel at the Croce dell’Uomo depends on its parish.
History
The church of Piazza is on the list of dependencies of the chapter of Como Cathedral from the end of the 13th century (Wikipedia). The parish was set up in 1563, and in Bishop Ninguarda’s visit at the end of the 16th century it already appears as a parish of the pieve of Zezio, with 206 inhabitants. The building is dated to the second half of the 16th century but the consecration came on 6 November 1785, at the hands of Bishop Mugiasca; in 1931 it was enlarged to the south and decorated (UPEL, parish). The patron saint is celebrated on 26 December.
What to see
The facade is linear, gabled, with a lintelled portal and a lunette window; two statues in niches, Abbondius and Stephen, are all the decoration, under a triangular pediment with a cross. The interior has one nave, with two side chapels and a deep apsed presbytery, and is very rich: elaborate stuccoes, faux marbles, Corinthian capitals and biblical scenes frescoed along the groin vault. The two side altars, with marble balustrades, hold statues of Mary with the Child and of Christ; the high altar is crowned by a large altarpiece with the martyrdom of Saint Stephen, which Wikipedia attributes to Francesco Carpano (17th century). In the apse half-dome are painted Jesus the Good Shepherd and God the Father. Wikipedia also notes 16th-century frescoes and a Way of the Cross by Lazzaro Pasini.
Beside the church is the youth oratory, with a fine view of the lake. Higher up, at about 800 metres, at the Croce dell’Uomo, at the start of the 19th century the parish priest of Piazza dedicated the summit cross to Saint Abbondius: every 31 August the people climbed in procession, until 1869; a votive chapel, opened on 31 August 1924, was put up after the First World War and Mass is still said there at the end of August (parish, UPEL).
Practical information
We found no up-to-date official source for opening hours: to visit the church it is best to ask the parish of Piazza Santo Stefano, which belongs to the Beata Vergine del Bisbino Pastoral Community.
Sources
- UPEL Italia, Chiese di Piazza Santo Stefano (2022)
- Comunità Pastorale Beata Vergine del Bisbino, Parrocchia di Santo Stefano
- Wikipedia, Chiesa di Santo Stefano (Cernobbio) entry; SIUSA, entry for the parish of S. Stefano.