Church of San Nicola ---

At Almenno San Salvatore, standing out among splendid vineyard scenery, is the Church of Santa Maria della Consolazione, also known as San Nicola, dating back to the 1500s. Inside, the building preserves a rare example of a sixteenth-century organ: built by the Antegnati (1588), it has been preserved intact and, after an exemplary restoration, is still used for concerts. Born as a votive offering of hope during the terrible plague of 1483-84, the Church of Santa Maria della Consolazione at Almenno San Salvatore tells a story of faith and rebirth. The inhabitants, having escaped the contagion, decided to build a chapel dedicated to Saints Sebastian and Rocco, but the preaching of the Augustinian friar Alberto da Sarnico inspired them instead to build a church and monastery dedicated to the Virgin. In the sixteenth century