Chiesa di Santa Maria presso San Satiro — Attraction in Milan

A few minutes walk from the Duomo lies this church. The entrance to the church is very small and you will have to keep an eye finding this place. Once you go inside, you will find a large no of wall art inside the church. Entry is free and photography is allowed, so you can easily visit the church and have a look at the magnificent views of its interior. Tucked away in a small alley in the middle of Milan’s shopping district (via Torino) is Chiesa di Santa Maria presso San Satiro (Church or Basilica of Santa Maria at San Satiro). 95% of people walking this main drag don’t even realize there’s this hidden jewel that most will miss. About a five-minute walk near Milan’s Duomo you’ll find this most remarkable and interesting church in Milan. As you approach the entrance, it’s just an ordinary small church but what’s remarkable about this church is that a great architect and painter Donate Bramante has built a church with an amazing optical illusion dating back in 1482. Viewing from the back as you enter, you’ll see an altar that’s deep as if the altar has an additional depth behind it. Once you get to the front on either side, you’ll see that the nave and the area behind the altar seem much bigger and deeper due to an extraordinary optical illusion. People however are discouraged to go in because they see a sign in front that says no flash photography, they often think though that no photography is allowed. Yes, you are allowed to take pictures but don’t use the flash of course. The interior of the church is dark but to get a much nicer picture, there’s a coin operated machine to the left as you enter that can lights up the front altar. You drop your 1 Euro coin and surprise yourself with great picture taking opportunity! Better hurry though, the lighting doesn’t last long so take as many pictures as you want and enjoy the beautiful scene! Definitely not to be missed...

It is a magnificent church located in the heart of Milan, near Piazza Duomo. It is the only one in the world to remember San Satiro, elder brother of Sant'Ambrogio, which is represented inside in a splendid painting. The interior creates a sense of pleasant astonishment, alternating lights and shadows with paintings and scrolls, and, behind the altar, an apse seems to stand out, well complemented by columns and decorations. However, when one proceeds towards the altar, one realizes that one cannot pass, since there is little less than a meter of space: the apse is, in reality, an optical illusion, an illusory perspective and does not exist . This illusion was created by Donato Bramante, one of the greatest Italian architects, who used the reduced space of the church to create the fake apse which measures 97 centimeters instead of 9 meters and 70 planned in the original project. It is very beautiful to remain in the silence of the church and admire, in the light of candles, the images and the faith of the people who alternate in the visit and in the prayers. It is thus possible to enjoy a moment of reflection in the heart of a city where life is conditioned by the fast pace...

Fantastic place with a lot of history of the Italian Renaissance, everything super renovated and beautiful.

There is this Wooow effect when looking to the best perspective of Donato Bramante. He was a legendary architect (artist, an universal man) that lived in Milan during Ludovico Sforza's govern.

They decided to build this church after listening to a miracle happened about 200 years before, when a drunk man passed in front of the small chapel with the painting of Madonna and Jesus (which now is on the main church altar) and stab Jesus neck. People said it started bleeding.

But the problem of building the church at that place was the lack of space on the back side.

Bramante managed to do the perspective trick and an incredible illusion of 9,6m depth, while he had only 0,96m available.

Even Leonardo da Vinci was involved in the buiding of this church as Carlo Pedretti tells us.

(I am a researcher of Renaissance and da Vinci. For a street walk in Milan see airbnb...