• Culture

    CHURCHES

    spirituality and tradition

PLACES OF WORSHIP

Churches and chapels, many of which are significant from a historical and artistic point of view, are found in all the villages crossed by the Balteo Trail.

Religious devotion pervades this land, where crosses and shrines were built in the past, even in harsh and dangerous places, to invoke protection or to favour crops.

NOT TO BE MISSED

Sant'Orso

The cloister of the church of Sant’Orso in Aosta (stages 18-19) is considered among the highest expressions of Romanesque religious sculpture. The wooden choir, the ancient frescoes in the attic and the chapel of the Priorship are also noteworthy.

THE CATHEDRAL OF AOSTA

The Renaissance makes its entrance into Aosta with the shapes and colors of terracotta on the facade of the Cathedral. The wooden stalls in the choir, the floor mosaics, the Ottonian frescoes in the attic and the museum of treasures are also worthy of …

THE shrine OF MACHABY

Above Arnad, along stage 4, there is an ancient shrine dedicated to the Madonna of the Snow. A hostel built in a 17th-century fort and a holiday farm serving snacks based on local products offer their hospitality.

SAN MARTINO CHURCH

In Arnad (stages 4 and 22) the stone shows the sacredness of the building, a precious pearl of history and beauty. The structure (11th century) in the Romanesque style and the 14th- and 15th-century frescoes are noteworthy.

MADELEINE CHAPEL

In Gressan, a few steps off the route (stage 18), the Romanesque church of Sainte-Marie-Magdeleine de Villa is known as the "Madeleine Chapel". The apse, the 12th-century bell tower and the frescoes by the painter Giacomino d'Ivrea are outstanding.

SAINT-VINCENT CHURCH

The church, in the welcoming pedestrian center of Saint-Vincent (stage 7), stands on the remains of a Roman building dating back to 300-400 AD.

CHURCHES ALONG THE TRAIL

Churches and shrines
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Extrapieraz Chapel

Brusson

Dedicated to Our Lady of the Snow, it is dated 1880 and conserves even older elements: an eighteenth-century altar, a satin, eighteenth-century planet and a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary with Child, holding the moon under her feet and measuring 1.10 …

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Churches and shrines
Churches and shrines

Fenilia Chapel

Brusson

Dated 1870 and renovated around twenty years ago. It was built in 1677 in honour of St. Gratus. In 1714 the chapel was dedicated to St. Matthew. It still hosts a wooden statue of St. Gratus and one of St. John the Baptist (not well preserved) and one of …

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Churches and shrines
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La Croix Chapel

Brusson

Dedicated to Our Lady of the Snow, it is dated 1880 and conserves even older elements: an eighteenth-century altar, a satin, eighteenth-century planet and a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary with Child, holding the moon under her feet and measuring 1.10 …

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Churches and shrines
church of Brusson

Parish church of San Maurizio

Brusson

The 15th century church of San Maurizio was rebuilt between 1870 and 1873. The octagonal pyramid-shaped spire of the bell tower by Brusson was rebuilt in 1882, given that the old one had been destroyed by lightening. The church was designed by the …

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Churches and shrines
Church of St.Anselm - Challand-Saint-Anselme

Parish church of Saint-Anselme

Challand-Saint-Anselme

The parish church is situated within the residential area of Quinçod, on the site where the chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Consolation, Saint Valentine and Saint Barbara originally stood, it was consecrated in 1762.The building has a rectangular layout …

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Churches and shrines
Churches and shrines

Shrine of Sant'Anna

Challand-Saint-Anselme

In the hamlet of Chatillonet we find the chapel of Sant’Anna which originates from the seventeenth century, it was rebuilt by the parish priest of Besenval, who blessed it on the 26th of July 1888. Each year on the 26th of July there is a celebration …

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Churches and shrines
Churches and shrines

Chapels

Challand-Saint-Victor

Oillon chapel Situated in the hamlet of the same name (1,169 metres a.s.l.), it dates back to 1747 and is dedicated to Saint Gratus. Its naivety makes for a suggestive sight. *Chapel of Saints Erasmus and James Located in the hamlet of Isollaz, it was …

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Churches and shrines
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Isollaz Chapel

Challand-Saint-Victor

Located in the hamlet of Isollaz, it was built in 1859 half way over a bridge, as a testimony of the request for divine protection on a dangerous place of passage.

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Churches and shrines
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Oillon Chapel

Challand-Saint-Victor

Situated in the hamlet of the same name (1,169 metres a.s.l.), it dates back to 1747 and is dedicated to Saint Gratus. Its naivety makes for a suggestive sight.

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Churches and shrines
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Oratory of Saint-Maxime

Challand-Saint-Victor

Located in the hamlet of Tragnod, the chapel dates back to before the 15th century and is said to be the first church of Challand.According to tradition, the inhabitants of Issime, in the nearby Valley of Gressoney, crossed Col Dondeuil and went downhill …

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