The first complex in this area dates back to the first half of the 12th century, consisting of the Santo Sepolcro Hospital for pilgrims traveling to or from the Holy Land and a church, located outside Porta Ponte (today Borgo Durbecco). The title of Santa Maria Maddalena, possibly linked to the church, appears in documents for the first time in 1237, associated with the hospice.
The current church was built between the 13th and 14th centuries, when the complex was acquired by the Order of the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem (later of Rhodes, then Malta), who managed it through Commendators, responsible for both spiritual and economic care.
The church has a single nave, decorated with local-school frescoes, and is covered by a slightly lowered vault. Its façade features a 17th-century portico, likely replacing an earlier colonnaded structure, in keeping with the Padana tradition. On the left, a solid portico with ogival arches and pilasters once offered shelter to travelers. At the end of the portico stands the square bell tower.
The most notable Commendator was the Milanese Fra Sabba da Castiglione (1480–1554), a humanist who promoted restorations and called renowned artists to work on the church. He commissioned the renovation of the adjacent cloister in 1525 and the magnificent apse fresco of 1533 by Girolamo da Treviso il Giovane. This fresco depicts the Virgin in throne with Child, San Giovannino, Santa Maria Maddalena, and Santa Caterina d’Alessandria, with Fra Sabba kneeling as donor. On the left wall is his tomb within a monochrome fresco by Francesco Menzocchi (1545), showing the elderly Fra Sabba presented to the Virgin by Saint Joseph, accompanied by the Baptist and Mary Magdalene. The tomb slab features a Latin epigraph composed by Fra Sabba himself, flanked by allegories of Pietà and Silenzio.
Fragments of 14th-century local-school frescoes adorn the nave walls, adding to the church’s rich medieval and Renaissance heritage.
Directions: The church is almost always open, but if closed, inquire at the nearby Rione Bianco club. It can be reached by car (parking is available in the church square) or by walking from the center along Corso Saffi, crossing the river via Corso Europa, and continuing into Borgo Durbecco, ending at Porta delle Chiavi. The Commenda is located just before the gate in the small square named Fra Sabba da Castiglione.
