To the west of Pescantina, between the city of Verona and Lake Garda, stands the beautiful and ancient church of San Michele.

Its first documented appearance is in a papal bull of 1554.

The characteristic features of the Romanesque Veneto style are well represented by the wall structure, with pebbles arranged in a fishbone pattern, the façade, which features a round-arched entrance door and the wooden ceiling with its trusses.

The parish church was built and completed in two different periods, first in the 11th-12th centuries and then in the mid-16th century. The 'gabled' façade has the entrance built in the first period, while the windows are from a later period.

The building has a single nave at the end of which is the apse with an altar from the 1700s. As for the pictorial decorations, it is possible to admire frescoes dating back to the 14th century attributed to the school of Altichiero or that of Guarentio, which are of great interest.

In particular, on the apse wall, the depiction of St Michael the Archangel stinging the damned in hell with his spear stands out.

On the arch of the southern portal of the church, a palindromic inscription 'SATOR AREPO TENET OPERA ROTAS' was graffitied in the 12th century. Its meaning is not certain, but it could be 'The cultivator of a small piece of land with his work keeps the wheels', where wheels means the mill wheel he needs to procure food.

TIMES AND VISITS:

Holy Mass takes place on Saturdays at 6 p.m. (daylight saving time) or 5 p.m. (standard time), and can be accessed half an hour before the service begins.

If, however, you wish to visit outside of Mass time, you must contact the Parish of the Cathedral of S. Lorenzo at: 045 7150056.