Church of San Giacomo della Cerreta

In the countryside between Belgioioso and the river Po, near the hamlet of San Giacomo della Cerreta stands the small church of San Giacomo, a destination for pilgrims because it is located on the ancient route of the Via Francigena, to which its name refers to another of the destinations of medieval pilgrims: Santiago de Compostella in Spain. In the past, near San Giacomo della Cerreta, there was the small settlement of Porcaria, whose name refers to the breeding of pigs, documented from the twelfth century and disappeared in the fourteenth century. The church is of Lombard art from the first half of the fifteenth century, it has a single room, entirely painted with votive paintings related to pilgrimages. In addition to the Madonna, Saint Roch and Saint James are repeatedly depicted, both in the guise of pilgrims, carrying a stick and a saddlebag. In the images of St. James, the characteristic shell that pilgrims collected at Cape Finisterre, on the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean, has been added as a sign and reminder of the journey made.