Le campane di Gravellona Toce (VB)

The first church dedicated to the apostle St Peter was built in the 12th century next to the banks of the River Toce, whose impetus seemed to stop there and flow into Lake Maggiore. The church was placed under the protection of the Castello counts, whose large castle stood near an ancient medieval oratory that still remains. The main church in Gravellona (Italy) was restored in the 16th century, only to be abandoned in the 17th century due to the precarious condition of the structural layout. The new parish church was consecrated by Bishop Visconti of Novara on 17 August 1696, the day he was on his way to make his pastoral visit. The interior is divided into three naves by pillars above which runs the cornice on which the frescoed vaults begin. The façade, which remained incomplete due to lack of funds, was built in 1862 to a design by an architect from Verbania after studying the Renaissance structure. To complete the façade, a new bell tower was also erected, built in 1865 using a pink granite base. The previous bells were replaced by a new concert of three bells in B flat major, made in 1865 by Felice Bizzozero's foundry. The church dominates the entire historic centre due to the splendour of the colours of the façade and bell tower, which, thanks to a play of proportions, narrows near the centre of gravity. The tower is crowned by the dome added in 1930, while in 1921 the concert was expanded by Achille Mazzola from three to five bells in F major, because the large bell had cracked at the end of the First World War. The bells were rather integrated with the original ones, except for the fourth one in the concert, which was decidedly louder even than the new ones. f' - g' - a' - b' flat - c'' On our way home, we happened to pass through this town, from where the motorway to Milan and Genoa starts. The parish priest allowed us to visit the tower and ring the bells, on the occasion of the Saturday evening that started Holy Week with Palm Sunday. It was one of the last important towers missing from the province's list. #vlogs #travel #italy #bells #church #bell #culture #city #catholicchurch #mountain #view #landscape #tradition