Historical Notes

It was Canon Costantino Massino who in 1589 designed a sacred route to tell the life of the Virgin Mary through images, adding a new attraction to the pre-existing sanctuary. Twenty-three chapels and five hermitages of the original project still exist. Between the end of the sixteenth century and the beginning of the seventeenth century, the interior was designed by the Flemish artist Juan de Wespin, known as "il Tabacchetti", who was soon joined by his brother Nicolas, as well as the artist Guglielmo Caccia from Monferrato, known as "il Moncalvo", and artist Giorgio Alberini from Alessandria.
During the seventeenth century, the disputes between the Gonzagas and the Dukes of Savoy (the wars of Monferrato) caused the interruption of the works, damages and partial reconstructions. Between the end of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Napoleonic abolitions of religious orders caused the Lateran canons to be abandoned and the sale of several lots of the Sacred Mount, the church and the convent, destined to be demolished.  Thanks to the efforts of a private individual who bought it back, the complex became the property of the Diocese of Casale. A period of restoration and reorganization of the sacred route to depict the mysteries of the Rosary began in the mid-nineteenth century. The Franciscan sculptor Giuseppe Latini was involved in the reconstruction of the sacred scenes while in the last quarter of the century the Savona-based master Antonio Brilla, following the great Ligurian ceramic tradition, was involved. The new restoration works, in the thirties of the twentieth century, were ordered to the Casale-based sculptor Guido Capra.