Chiesa di San Marco

The church of San Marco in Novara is a Baroque single-nave church built under Bishop Carlo Bascapè. It preserves major works by Daniele Crespi and Guglielmo Caccia, known as il Moncalvo.

Why it matters

San Marco reflects the artistic programme promoted by Bascapè, bishop of Novara from 1593 to 1615, who brought the post-Tridentine art of Milan into the region. Its paintings and frescoes preserve a concentrated example of seventeenth-century devotional art in the city.

What to notice

Daniele Crespi's large Martyrdom of Saint Mark dominates the nave. The cupola and apse vaults include frescoes by il Moncalvo, including the Glory of Saint John the Evangelist and figures of the Evangelists and Sibyls. In a side chapel, Moncalvo depicted Saint Charles Borromeo in procession. The use of marble, gilded wood and stucco gives the interior a richly layered appearance.

Context and history

Bishop Carlo Bascapè laid the first stone in 1607. The design is attributed to Father Ferrari, a Barnabite architect. The church was completed and consecrated in 1691, and its decoration accumulated through the seventeenth century. Commissions by Crespi and Moncalvo connect Novara with the artistic circles of post-Tridentine Milan.