Basilica di San Giorgio (St. George's Basilica), Como

The Saint George's Basilica is located on the road to Cernobbio in the Como suburb of Borgovico. The religious edifice is an odd grafting of the Romanesque and Baroque architectural styles. The Baroque elements were added to the original plain Romanesque structure.

The church was built around 1075 in the Lombard-Romanesque style with three naves, a portico, and an attached cemetery. There were three apses; a wide central apse and two shallower side apses. The central apse held five niches. Frescoes were added in 1081. In the center of the presbytery are the remains of the sepulcher of Saint Eutichio.

Extensive renovations took place in the 17th century. The facade was finished in granite, and the basic structure was reinforced against flooding. Architect Giovanni Battista Recchi completed the exterior of the church. Agostino Silva, an architect from Ticino, introduced massive square columns in support of the central nave and transept.

The restorations between 1876 and 1925 led to the revelation of underground rooms and ancient frescoes in the five niches of the central apse. The frescoes, threatened with water damage in the 1960s, were restored and put on exhibition again. In 2003, they were moved to two rooms of the Civic Art Gallery of Volpi Palace.