San Giovanni in Conca is a crypt

Crypt

In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....

 of a former basilica church in Milan

Milan

Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

, northern Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. It is now located in the centre of Piazza Missori.

History

The basilica of San Giovanni in Conca dates from the 4th century AD, and was located in a residential quarter of the ancient city

Mediolanum

Mediolanum, the ancient Milan, was an important Celtic and then Roman centre of northern Italy. This article charts the history of the city from its settlement by the Insubres around 600 BC, through its conquest by the Romans and its development into a key centre of Western Christianity and capital...

. Remains of the mosaic pavement of this original edifice are now in the Arhcaeological Museum of Milan.

The church was rebuilt in the 11th century, but was destroyed by Frederick Barbarossa's troops in 1162. It was again reconstructed in the 13th century and later became the private chapel of the Visconti

House of Visconti

Visconti is the family name of two important Italian noble dynasties of the Middle Ages. There are two distinct Visconti families: The first one in the Republic of Pisa in the mid twelfth century who achieved prominence first in Pisa, then in Sardinia where they became rulers of Gallura...

 rulers of Milan. Bernabò Visconti

Bernabo Visconti

Bernabò Visconti was an Italian soldier and statesman, who was Lord of Milan.-Life:He was born in Milan, the son of Stefano Visconti and Valentina Doria. From 1346 to 1349 he lived in exile, until he was called back by his uncle Giovanni Visconti...

 had it connected to his new grandiose palace through a super-elevated walk, and was buried here in a monument by Bonino da Campione

Bonino da Campione

Bonino da Campione was an Italian sculptor in the Gothic style, active between 1350 and 1390.His name indicates that he was born in - or into a family originating in - Campione d'Italia, a Lombardy town in an enclave within Switzerland...

 which is now in the Sforzesco Castle together with that of his consort, Regina della Scala

Scaliger

The noble family of the Scaliger were Lords of Verona. When Ezzelino III was elected podestà of the commune in 1226, he was able to convert the office into a permanent lordship...

.

In 1531 Duke Francesco II Sforza

Francesco II Sforza

Francesco II Sforza , also known as Francesco Maria Sforza, was the last Duke of Milan from 1521 until his death.He was the son of Ludovico Sforza and Beatrice d'Este...

 donated it to the Carmelites

Carmelites

The Order of the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel or Carmelites is a Catholic religious order perhaps founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel, hence its name. However, historical records about its origin remain uncertain...

, who erected a campanile which was utilized as astronomical observatory in the 19th century. The church was deconsecrated by the Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

ns and closed by the French in the late 18th century.
In 1879 the church was shortened to allow the construction of the current Via Mazzini; in the occasion, the Gothic façade was attached to the apse. San Giovanni in Conca was then sold to the Waldensians

Waldensians

Waldensians, Waldenses or Vaudois are names for a Christian movement of the later Middle Ages, descendants of which still exist in various regions, primarily in North-Western Italy. There is considerable uncertainty about the earlier history of the Waldenses because of a lack of extant source...

 who, when the church was demolished (1949), rebuilt the façade on their new church in Via Francesco Sforza. Works of demolition were however halted just before their end, leaving only the crypt and remains of the apse.

Remains

San Giovanni in Conca ruins include the only extant example of Romanesque

Romanesque architecture

Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...

 crypt

Crypt

In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....

 in Milan. It houses archaeological findings which illustrates the church's history.

Over the crypt are remains of the apse walls, with a single mullioned window and blind arches typical of the Milanese Romanesque.

Artworks from the church which are now in the Sforzesco Castle include, apart the two aforementioned funerary monuments, two figures from an Annunciation (11th century), some Romanesque capitals and frescoes from the 14th century.