On a Sunday in November 1604, a procession from Malnate, near Varese, brought to the monastery of Santa Maria del Monte the offerings collected for the construction of a new chapel on the way to the sanctuary.
The road was completely different from the present one. In fact, it was a steep path climbing up the mountain, dotted with small wooden crosses. Under each cross, there was a box to collect alms to finance the construction of a new Sacro Monte. Here, in fact, along a new and majestic avenue, a succession of events from the life of Mary and Jesus would be represented, the so-called ‘Mysteries of the Rosary’. Pilgrims had already been going up to the sanctuary for centuries, but during the 17th century, the mount would be completely transformed and adapted to the new political and religious demands of the Catholic Church. This is what you will discover in the next stages.