Sanctuary of the Madonna del Pilar

In the locality of Madonna di Castenaso, about 4 kilometers from Castenaso, stands the sanctuary called Madonna del Pilar.
Built on the land of the College of Spain which had various properties in these areas, the church was so named by the Rector of the college in honor of the Virgin venerated in Zaragoza.
In the magnificent Baroque interior of the sanctuary, the miraculous image of the Virgin by Giovanni Battista Bolognini (1699) is kept.
In this church on 16 March 1822 the wedding of the composer Gioacchino Rossini with the famous soprano Isabella Colbran was celebrated.
The Rossini spouses lived for about ten years in a villa adjacent to the church, where the Maestro composed works such as Semiramide and Guglielmo Tell. Only a characteristic cockpit remains of Villa Rossini today.
Colbran's remains rest in the monumental cemetery of the Certosa di Bologna, together with other greats of music, from Farinelli to Ottorino Respighi.