MILAN

Milan is among the most often mentioned cities in our lectures about medieval art. That is why I was extremely happy when I finally got the chance to see it. In November 2021, our group of almost twenty students departed on the night train from Vienna. Although the journey was not very comfortable, we had a lot of fun and arrived in Milan in the morning, already as a well-coordinated group. Professor Foletti keenly awaited us in front of the Basilica Ambrosiana, however, rainy weather and the sleepless night convinced us to prioritize a morning coffee over the waiting professor. Late, but full of energy, we began our seminar in the atrium of the Ambrosiana. Professor Foletti lectured about the enormous significance of Early Medieval Milan and how the emperor himself kneeled in front of the charismatic Milanese bishop to ask for forgiveness. In front of the door of the basilica, we learned how Saint Ambrose used his charm, skill, and rhetoric to convert people to Christianity. However, we were most excited when we got a chance to kneel in front of the golden altar and examine the detailed goldsmith work, trying to decipher its iconography. We spent the entire day in the Ambrosiana, but this was not enough to cover everything this building has to offer.

The next day was just as full of stimuli. We visited the St Lorenzo cathedral, with its remarkable central ground plan, and the St Aquilino chapel, with its beautiful mosaics. The luxurious execution of both architecture and decorations convinced us that we had just visited a royal building from the fourth century. In the Museo Diocesano, we examined the famous San Nazaro silver box and, in the Museo del Tesoro, we could not take our eyes off the golden gospel book covers and ivory diptychs. At the end of the day, we also visited the famous Duomo, but this time we were not interested in the astonishing gothic architecture. We came to look for traces of much older times. We headed towards the underground, where we found the foundations of a baptistery. It was once as spectacular as the one in Naples, but only a ground plan with a font and few fallen tesserae are left of it today.

Our final day in Milan was full of haste and surprises. We set out for Castelseprio early in the morning. We were mostly looking forward to seeing the apsidal mural of Santa Maria Foris Portas. After more than an hour’s journey by train, and another hour of walking on rather busy roads, we were astonished to find that the archeological park and church were closed! The internet fooled us once again, and we had no other choice then to peep into the church through a small opening in the door. Our disappointment was partially alleviated by an excellent lunch in a local restaurant, but the following hour of fast walking uphill deadened us very quickly again. We had to catch the train to Milan, which, almost miraculously, we did, but in Milan, we had to wait another forty-five minutes for the delayed train to Monza. Because of these inconveniences, we were forced to present our papers in record time, and we only had one hour to see the entire treasury of the cathedral and the famous Iron Crown. Finally, we had a talk about the heritage of queen Theodolinda in front of the cathedral’s portal, and once again we had to run back to Milan. Then we just grabbed our luggage and finally got some rest on the night train to Vienna. It was an exhausting day! However, after wine and focaccia, we concluded that it was worth it. Milan’s treasures are worth seeing, even in a rush or through a small opening in a door.