Basilica di San Giovanni Battista
Busto Arsizio, IT
The Basilica of St John the Baptist was built between 1609 and 1646. The bell tower, however, dates from the period between 1400 and 1418 and is the oldest part of the present building. The imposing façade consists of a lower order of twin Ionic pilasters, a portico with pediment with bronze bas-reliefs representing the life of St. John the Baptist (by Enrico Astori of 1908) and statues of St. Ambrose. The upper part of the façade was created between 1699 and 1701 by Domenico Valmagini, who gave it an oval window, a pediment, the statues of St. Peter, St. Paul and four prophets and the central statue of St. John the Baptist (by Siro Zanelli), which represents the highest point of the façade.