Church of San Lorenzo Martire

The Church of San Lorenzo Martire stands isolated on a large embankment. It lies within the territory of the hamlet of Magno di Bovegno, known in ancient times as Magno San Lorenzo, and borders the Municipality of Irma, whose parish church it was for a long time. The church presents itself in its clean proto-Renaissance style, characterised by a geometric diamond decoration engraved in the plaster on the exterior walls.
The façade has a simple design, with a gabled profile, framed by imposing cornerstones and lightened only by a small rose window aligned with the entrance door. The sides, moved by buttresses, still preserve most of the diamond decoration mentioned above, which is enriched here, in the eaves, with a high fascia designed by plant racemes featuring putti and masks.

Church interior

The interior of the Church of San Lorenzo Martire, with a single nave, is punctuated by slightly lowered pointed arches that support the three cross vaults covering the bays of the hall. The first bay has no traces of decoration on the walls, while the second is embellished with numerous preserved fragments of frescoes; on the right side, there is an Enthroned Madonna flanked by various saints, among whom we can recognise Queen St Helena. On the left side, there is the Enthroned Virgin between saints and some panels with individual images of saints. Worth noting in this portion of the church are the numerous fragments of frescoes on the arches, including an elegant effigy of San Liberata, patron saint of twins or multiple births, testifying how in ancient times these structures, today treated in exposed stone, were frescoed both on the front and on the sides. In the third bay, all the traces of frescoes are concentrated on the wall of the holy arch. Three overlapping registers can be found on the right side, in which the figured panels are preserved for two-thirds of their width.

The bottom register features a traditional Pietà with sinewy, tapered lines, flanked by an effigy of Saint Apollonia. The upper register houses a beautiful Enthroned Madonna flanked by St Antonio Abate dating back to 1521. The actual altarpiece of the Church of San Lorenzo Martire di Bovegno is a large Deposition, characterised by the strong diagonal cut of the sepulchre on which stands the dead Christ supported by Mary and St. John and mourned by the Holy Women. A small risen Christ dominates the upper panel. The recess of the presbytery has numerous votive panels on the left side with Madonnas flanked by saints and a Trinity. Instead, the back wall features a complex Renaissance architectural framework containing scenes from the life of St Lorenzo.