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Musso
The town of Musso is located in a small gulf on the western shore of the upper Lake Como.
The town rises at the foot of the rocky spur known as the stone of Musso. Musso owes its origin to the marble veins outcropping in the stone. The gray-white marble was widely used since Roman times. The Duomo of Como and the columns of San Lorenzo in Milan were built with this precious material. The inhabited center was mostly populated by miners, while the remaining agricultural population was scattered on the nearby hills.
Musso
It is characterized by the ancient houses that line the Strada Regina and by the low porticoes on the lake near the square of the pier. In the past it had considerable historical interest. In the XIII century it was a fief of the Malacrida family, allied to the Duchy of Milan. In the early 1500s Gian Giacomo Medici, known as il Medeghino, conquered the castle and appointed himself Conte delle Tre Pievi.
The Medeghino enriched the existing fortification on the stone. Fortified on the peak of the lake, where the small church of Sant’Eufemia still stands today. Then at the highest point of the stone, where as a protection there was the moat dug into the rock to defend its fortress behind it. In a short time he conquered all the lands around Lake Como and part of Brianza. He was defeated ten years later by the Sforza allies with the Swiss Grisons. The castle was destroyed except for the small church of Sant’Eufemia.
Historical center of Musso
In the historical center of Musso we find the church of San Biagio, anciently named after the Saints Nazaro and Celso, erected as a parish church in 1387. It preserves the fourteenth-century apse of the semicircular apse, with blind late Romanesque arches on the outside. Inside, in addition to fine paintings and frescoes, the coats of arms and tombs of the Malacrida family are preserved.
Not far from the Sasso di Musso, in a wonderful panoramic position stands the church of Sant’Eufemia which was built over an ancient pagan temple and included in the walls of the castle. On the slopes below the church of Sant’Eufemia in 1858 the noble Giuseppe Manzi, thanks also to the type of rock, obtained an amazing garden. He called this Eden Il Gardino del Merlo, full of exotic plants, caves, water games and suspension bridges. Today some structures of what was once a natural amusement park are still visible.
