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Recent Posts
- Escaping the Holocaust- Via Switzerland? January 30, 2026
- Como’s Sepulchral Art – The City of the Dead January 15, 2026
- Federico Frigerio: The Face of Como October 14, 2025
- Como’s Twin-Tailed Mermaids June 23, 2025
- Beyond the City Walls: Via Milano May 21, 2025
Tag Archives: History
Escaping the Holocaust- Via Switzerland?
Once the Nazis had occupied Northern and Central Italy from September 8th 1943, escape across the border to Switzerland was the only option for many Jews seeking safety. But the Swiss had issued an anti-semitic decree back on August 13, 1942 that closed their borders to most Jews Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized, People, History
Tagged Como, Politics, Mendrisio, holocaust, jews, second world war, History, Chiasso, Shoah, Switzerland, Asylum, Erwin Naef, Voetterl
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Como’s Sepulchral Art – The City of the Dead
Como’s Monumental Cemetery, the city of the dead, reflects the city of the living – particularly of its art and architecture. As such, it is well worth a visit since no other location brings together in one defined space the city’s disparate artistic traditions and architectural styles from over the last two centuries. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Art, Culture, History, Places of interest, Uncategorized
Tagged Agliati, aldo galli, Art, cemetery, Culture, Eli Riva, Enrico Rusconi, Frigerio, Giuliano Collina, History, Marchini, Odescalchi, religious art, Religious symbols, sacred art, sculpture, Somaini, Tavani, Terragni, tourism, travel
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Como’s Twin-Tailed Mermaids
The Melusina – a twin-tailed mermaid – can be seen in a variety of locations around Como. We explore the myth of the Melusina and why her symbol adorns both religious and secular buildings in the city. Continue reading
Escaping the Holocaust: Hiding from Home in Varese
Personal testimonies can help us understand the reality of living through historical events. These diary extracts convey some sense of the constant anxiety in avoiding deportation to a Nazi death camp. Continue reading
Posted in crime, History, People, Uncategorized
Tagged Auschwitz, cernobbio, Como, De Danonis, Fargion, germany, History, holocaust, Italian Jews, jews, nazifascists, Race Laws, Shoah, Varese, Wartime
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Lake Como and Leonardo’s ‘Mona Lisa’
Experts now claim that Leonardo Da Vinci set two of his best known paintings amongst the landmarks on Lake Como’s eastern leg by identifying the landscape depicted in the background of the ‘Mona Lisa’ and his ‘Virgin of the Rocks’. Continue reading
Posted in Art, Culture, History, Itineraries, Lake, People, Uncategorized
Tagged Adda, Art, Azzone Visconti, canals, Como, Garlate, History, Le Grigne, lecco, Leonardo, leonardo-da-vinci, Mandello, milan, mona-lisa, Paris, Resegone, Vaprio D'Adda
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Fatal Accident on Lake Como: The Soldiers’ Story
“I can’t stand this any longer” – the final cry of a British Army Officer who drowned along with Mussolini’s daughter-in-law on Lake Como, May 1946. Continue reading
Posted in Events, History, Lake, People, Uncategorized
Tagged blevio, Como, drowning, Excelsior, Gina Ruberti, History, Hotel Vapore, Imperiale, italy, Lake Como, Mandarin Oriental, Medloc, medloc feeder, post war, Roccabruna, tragedy
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Como and Henry’s ‘Turbulent Priest’
Thomas a Becket was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by King Henry II of England in 1162 and then executed on his orders in 1170. His martyrdom and beatification gave birth to a cult celebrated across Europe including here in Como. Continue reading
Posted in Art, Culture, History, People, Places of interest, Uncategorized
Tagged Basilica, england, Henry II, History, Monreale, Palermo, relics, reliquary, San Giorgio, Sicily, Thomas Becket, travel
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Como to Auschwitz on Convoy 8
Convoy 8 to Auschwitz. The story of a diverse group all arrested in Como over December 1943 but from different backgrounds forced on the same journey and to share the same fate due to their shared ethnicity. The enormity of where racism can lead us must surely never be forgotten. Continue reading
Posted in crime, History, Uncategorized
Tagged Auschwitz, Brunate, Convoy, Fossoli, History, holocaust, jews, Memorial Day, Olgiate, Questura, RSI, Shoah, SS, world-war-ii
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The Como Companion 