Finero: religious buildings

The parochial church of Finero

The parochial church of Finero broke away from that of Malesco on February 4, 1569.

At that time, about halfway between the two centers, in Piasca, there was a small church serving the community of Finero and, despite the fact that there’s no trace of the little church today, the area is still identified by the inhabitants as “ old church “.

The Finero church is dedicated to St. Gotthard, celebrated on May 5, and is located on a rocky slope at the beginning of the village in the direction of Malesco; on the other side of the church stands the parish house “Cà dul Prev” (literally House of the Priest), which is close to the 1759 bell tower.

The oldest part of the church of Finero dates back to the second half of the 1400s and from 1658 it has been enlarged several times.

In 1691 the side altars were added, while the facade visible to the present day, on the town’s side, dates back to 1846. In 1876 an oratory was built on the side of the apse and linked to the pre-existing sacristy.

The church also has a small porch, restored in 2007 and a bell tower, whose cusp’s shape makes it similar to Villette’s one.

The church of Finero has only one nave and a presbytery bordered by a baroque balustrade. From the entrance, you can see the richness of iconographies, including the beautiful paintings by the painters Antonio Maria Borgnis Junior of S. Maria Maggiore and Bernardino Peretti of Buttogno, here preserved since 1864.

Oratory of the Rock

On the rocky spur above Finero’s church, in the apical position, stands the oratory of Our Lady of Loreto, also known as the Black Madonna.
Each year, on the second Sunday of September, with the occasion of the Feast of the Black Madonna, the statue of Our Lady is carried in procession in the parish church.
The oratory, due to its location on a rock, is called, Oratorio del Sasso (Oratory of the Rock), and it was also built, like the parish church, on the basis of a 1500 chapel, then expanded in the ‘700, concluded in 1842 and restored in 1995.
A porch protects the entrance, side by side with two devotional windows and, on the roof, rises a small bell tower.

The Peretti Chapel

Close to the parish church, the Peretti Chapel, dating back to 1755, limits the access to the cemetery.

It is an ancient mortuary chapel of the Peretti family, now owned by the Pironi family, used in the past as a common ossuary.

The chapel is certainly very interesting for the decorations that adorn it and for the presence of a small sundial on the south side.