Tuesday – San Zeno Maggiore

I wandered the streets on a deliberately very roundabout route to this church this afternoon. San Zeno is the patron saint of Verona. He was born in Africa , was the 8th bishop of Verona in the 460’s and converted the town to Christianity. He is pictured as a smiling black man , often with a fishing rod. There is a statue of him in the church with a cheeky grin and a fish on the end of his bishop’s crook.

The earliest church was built here in the 5h century but has been added to at different times over the years. The main bits were built in the early 1100’s. It is now considered to be one of the best examples of a Romanesque church in Northern Italy. Some of the literature says it is a mish mash of style – but that only matters if you have a clear idea of the different styles, which I donot. It was large and bright and airy. Different colours of local marble have been used. The façade is supposed to be really special but it was undergoing renovation and covered up.

There is a lovely brightly coloured , vibrant 3 part altarpiece done by Mantegna. There are 48 brass panels on the door depicting many different scenes. There is a crypt with a vaulted ceiling and many columns – lots of little cupola like shapes in the ceiling.
There are frescoes around the walls.

It was also not filled with tour groups – only a few other tourists and some locals

The cloisters were lovely – quiet and peaceful. It has rounded Romanesque arches on one side and pointed Gothic arches on the other. I have to say, that I have only just read that bit - I did not notice at the time, but it is clear from the many photos I took..