Description of the attraction
San Michele in Bosco is a religious complex in Bologna, which includes the church of the same name and the monastery of the Olivet order. The latter was bought by the city administration in 1955 to accommodate an orthopedic center.
The complex is located on a hill near the historic center of Bologna. On its territory you can see buildings, some of which date back to the 4th century. In 1364, Olivetan monks settled here by the decree of Pope Urban V. After their church was destroyed in 1430, the construction of a new one began in its place, and continued until 1523. The current Renaissance church was designed by Biagio Rosetti and his disciples, while the marble gate is the work of Baldassar Peruzzi. There are 4 side chapels and a presbytery inside.
The monastery, in turn, was built at the end of the 16th century - it has an octagonal covered gallery with frescoes from the Karacchi school. The former refectory is decorated by Giorgio Vasari, and the opulent library boasts 17th century frescoes. At the end of the 18th century, during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte, who banned all monastic orders, the monastery was confiscated and transferred to private ownership. After the unification of Italy, the villas of the noble families of the city were housed in it, and at the end of the 19th century, access to the territory of the monastery was open to everyone, and for a long time it became a favorite place for walks of the townspeople. Today it houses the Rizzoli Orthopedic Center. True, several Olivetan monks also live in the monastery.
The complex is surrounded by a wonderful garden, part of which is occupied by a vegetable garden. Once upon a time, flower exhibitions were held here, to which noble Bolognese families brought their "green" pets to show off to each other. From the very hill, a breathtaking panorama of Bologna opens, despite the fact that part of it is closed by dense thickets of forest. Evergreen trees - cedars, pines and spruces - were planted on the eastern side of the hill after World War II. And on the western slope you can see century-old oaks, cypresses, lindens and horse chestnuts.
