San Bernardino is the church in the hamlet of Ombriaco. What makes it special, however, is the worship that the inhabitants of the village cedicate to another saint: St. Vincent
Although the oratory was originally dedicated to Bernardino and Sebastian, the painting of the Martyrdom of St. Vincent on the high altar is nowadays the reason for the change of the village’s patron saint. It is said that in 1684 the then provost of Vendrogno commissioned a famous painter from Milan to paint a picture of the Martyrdom of Saint Vincent for the oratory of Inesio. When the painting arrived in Bellano, a group of young people from Vendrognesi came down to go and get it but, when they started to go up the Muggio, it began to snow. Once in Ombriaco, since the path had become impassable, they decided to stop in the village and deposit the painting in the small church to preserve it from the weather, with the hope of being able to resume the journey the next day. The following morning, however, the snow continued to fall heavily, as did the days that followed, and the transport was postponed several times. Every time the young people went to Ombriaco to get the painting, in fact, there was always something that prevented its transport along the mule track. At that point the inhabitants of Ombriaco began to think that the Saint had chosen to remain in their village and therefore asked the provost of Vendrogno to leave the painting in their church. The latter agreed and St. Vincent became the patron saint of the hamlet, relegating Saints Bernardino and Sebastian to being co-patrons.
The small church was built between 1450 and 1455, and underwent some later transformations in the 17th and 19th centuries. The façade is very simple, with a pitched roof. It does not have any kind of decoration; in the middle there is a small portal surmounted by three openings with a serliana scheme. Internally, the temple consists of a baroque-style nave, with a presbytery and a single altar. The altarpiece in the center depicts “The Madonna and Child in Glory and Saints Bernardino of Siena and Sebastiano” from the 17th century, while on a wall of the presbytery there is the painting “The Martyrdom of Saint Vincent” rom the same period.
