Ex Chiesa di San Carpoforo

The original structure of the church of San Carpoforo belonged to a Roman pagan temple dedicated to the goddess Vesta, later converted into a Christian place of devotion through the mediation of Saint Marcellina, sister of the Milanese bishop Saint Ambrogio.
The ancient Roman pagan temple was converted into a church during the decisive persecutory campaign, prepared by Saint Ambrogio, against the pagans and the Aryans.
The first historically proven evidence of the existence of the church dates back to the year 813.
The building was considerably changed in its shape in the 16th century, and was then completely rebuilt at the behest of Archbishop Federico Borromeo in the 17th century. Despite these interventions, the church was in full decline and already in 1760 it appeared to be administered by a single priest who was later removed and the parish suppressed in 1787, becoming a subsidiary church of the nearby church of Santa Maria del Carmine.
The church was purchased by the municipality of Milan in 1864 and was entrusted in 1993 to the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, which still uses it today as a venue for courses in decoration, restoration and contemporary sacred art.