Halloween is approaching, the scariest night of the year is about to return. How many are already preparing their spooky party? If you love the horror genre, Milan is the city for you. Dark legends haunt the metropolis and spooky places are just waiting to be visited, perhaps on October 31 itself. Ghoulish churches, abandoned factories and secret streets, lesser-known stops that hide chilling secrets and mysteries.
Table Of Contents
- The church plastered with human skulls and bones
- The Devil's Column.
- The scariest street in the city
- The wandering soul of Bernardina Visconti
- The Bagatti Valsecchi House Museum
- Monumental Cemetery
- The former slaughterhouse
- Madonna with horns
- The ghost town
- The House of the Omenoni
- The Crypt of San Giovanni in Conca
- Cardinal Ildefonso Schuster House
- The Acerbi Palace (Ca' del Diavol).
- The Alley of the Washerwomen
- Villa Invernizzi and the Pink Flamingos.
The church plastered with human skulls and bones
San Bernardino alle Ossa is one of the most unique stops in Milan. In this place charged with history and mystery, the walls of a 17th-century ossuary are entirely covered with human skulls and bones, transforming the macabre into Baroque art. Created as a cemetery for nearby hospitals, the complex has seen churches and structures succeed each other over the centuries, preserving fascinating legends and a unique atmosphere. A surprising and disturbing experience, perfect for those who like to discover the darker side of the city.
📍Where: Piazza Santa Stefano, Milan. Open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Weekends from 9:30 a.m.
The Devil’s Column.
Near the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio of stands a column with two holes. Here legend has it that during a confrontation between the devil and St. Ambrose, the latter got the better of it, jamming the devil’s horns on the column. Of the deed remain the two holes about halfway up the torso, still visible today. This is a column from the old Roman imperial palace in Milan, built by Emperor Maximian in the late 3rd century, at the time when the city became the capital of the Western Roman Empire.
The scariest street in the city
Right in the center of the city, a few steps from the Duomo, is Milan’s scariest street, Via Bagnera, the street where Milan’s first serial killer, Antonio Boggia, once lived and hid and murdered his victims here. To this day it is still a narrow and somewhat creepy street. Plus its walls still resonate with the old terrors of yesteryear.
The wandering soul of Bernardina Visconti
It seems that the soul of Bernarda Visconti, the illegitimate daughter of Bernabò Visconti, wanders in Piazza Cavour. Forced into a marriage she did not want, the daughter within a few years secretly became involved with a courtier. Her father, after discovering his daughter’s affair, sentenced him to be hanged, and she imprisoned her in one of the towers that formed the Rocchetta di Porta Nuova (where the arches of Piazza Cavour are today, at the entrance to Via Manzoni). Here she died, alone and of starvation. Legend has it that in winter the woman’s ghost wanders about, invoking the name of her beloved. Be careful passing under the arches of the structure.
The Bagatti Valsecchi House Museum
Among the most fascinating and mysterious residences in Milan, the Casa Museo Bagatti Valsecchi stands as a refuge steeped in history and secrets. This refined residence, desired and cared for down to the smallest detail by brothers Fausto and Giuseppe Bagatti Valsecchi in the late 19th century, is a journey into the Lombard Renaissance, but during the “Hidden Evidence” event it becomes the scene of a disturbing crime to be solved. In this intricate interplay of suspicions and revelations, every nook and cranny seems to hold a hidden truth, ready to engage you in a chilling immersive experience.
Tickets here!Monumental Cemetery
Although its beauty is unquestionable, this place hides a dark and somewhat eerie charm. Milan’s Monumental Cemetery is like an open-air museum, a place where the graves of the most important upper middle-class families rest, along with those of great Italian figures such as Alessandro Manzoni. What is most striking are the statues that tower above almost every tomb, from angels of death and figures of children to fine depictions of young women
The former slaughterhouse
If you are a fan of abandoned places, the Ex Slaughterhouse in Milan is a must-see. This huge industrial complex, built in the early 20th century and disused for years now, is a fascinating ghost town where nature has slowly regained the upper hand. Its structures, once the hub of meat processing, now house empty and silent spaces that become the perfect setting for exclusive events and alternative evenings with an underground character.
Madonna with horns
Among the mysterious places in Milan this one deserves mention. In the Basilica of Sant’Eustorgio, the oldest in Milan, stands a very special painting. It depicts a Madonna with horns carrying a baby Jesus, also with horns. That’s right you understand, we are not swearing. It is a work of religious art inside one of Milan’s most historic churches. It is located inside the Portinari Chapel of the Basilica. It is the work of Vincenzo Foppa, entitled The Miracle of the False Madonna. Take it for a spin and find out. But why the horns? Is it about blasphemy? No. It is a legend related to the figure of St. Peter of Verona.
We report what we read in Milano Today: according to tradition, while celebrating Mass in Sant’Eustorgio, St. Peter of Verona noticed that the devil had penetrated an icon of Mary placed above the altar. He immediately cast out the demon, along with a heretical magician portrayed on the right, holding a consecrated host between his fingers. Once her exorcism was performed, however, according to legend in the painting Our Lady was left with Lucifer’s horns.
📍Where: Piazza Sant’Eustorgio
The ghost town
Outside Milan but equally worthy is the “Las Vegas” of Lombardy, Consonno. A town that became a kind of toyland in the mid-20th century with lots of attractions. Only to fall into oblivion in a short time. Now it is a real ghost town. Empty and eerie. Perfect to include among the stops of Milan’s mysterious places, even if it is not quite in the city but an hour and a quarter away…
📍Where: Consonno
The House of the Omenoni
In the heart of Brera, this 16th-century mansion welcomes you with eight giant telamons (large men) with eerie grimaces. Their tormented expressions are said to be the result of a curse cast by an envious sculptor. You can admire these stone giants from the outside at any time, but the real thrill will come during the rare openings to the public, when whispers of centuries past seem to echo through the walls.
📍Where: 3 Omenoni Street.
The Crypt of San Giovanni in Conca
Hidden below street level, this Romanesque crypt is what remains of an ancient church. Legends speak of occult rituals and ghostly apparitions among its columns. Accessible for free during the day, it is at dusk that the atmosphere becomes denser and more mysterious, when shadows seem to dance on the ancient stones, evoking presences of another time.
📍Where: Piazza Missori, corner of Via Albricci. Admission is free but the Crypt is open only during special days. Upcoming ones are:
- Wednesday, Oct. 08 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m;
- Saturday, Oct. 11 from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m;
- Saturday, Oct. 25 from 2:30 to 5 p.m;
- Wednesday, October 29 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
To be sure, we recommend that you visit the official website of the Milan Archaeological Museum.
Cardinal Ildefonso Schuster House
In the heart of Milan, Cardinal Schuster’s House carries with it the shadow of a dark and troubled past. Founded as a convent and then transformed into a prison for political prisoners during the Napoleonic and Austro-Hungarian dominations, this building has seen faces marked by suffering and struggle locked within its walls. On the darkest nights, the spirits of friars and inmates whispered through the corridors. This Halloween, one of the rooms in the complex will be the setting for a candlelight concert, where the soundtracks of masterpieces such as Beetlejuice and The Addams Family will be reinterpreted in a classical key. Will you also participate or… Are you too scared?
Tickets here!The Acerbi Palace (Ca’ del Diavol).
This 17th-century building is known as the “House of the Devil” for a reason: the devil himself is said to have signed pacts with his soul here. Why this belief? Well, you should know that this Baroque-style palace turned out to be immune to the terrible plague that decimated Milan in 1630: its inhabitants and guests at the lavish parties of Marquis Ludovico Acerbi never fell ill. Rumors then began to circulate that Acerbi had made a pact with dark forces to protect his mansion, and that the souls of the dead roamed its corridors. Today Palazzo Acerbi is a symbol of curse and mystery, which can be visited from the outside, but its true atmosphere can be felt at nightfall, especially on full moon nights when, it is said, the masks come to life.
📍Where: Corso di Porta Romana, 3.
The Alley of the Washerwomen
This picturesque corner of the Naviglio Grande hides a macabre story. It is said that in the waters of the “ditch” used by the washerwomen hide the ghosts of betrayed and murdered lovers. Visit the alley at sunset, when the lights reflect on the water creating eerie shadow plays. Listen carefully: you may hear ghostly wails mingling with the gurgling of the water.
📍Where: Alzaia Naviglio Grande, 14.
Villa Invernizzi and the Pink Flamingos.
In the Quadrilatero del Silenzio is the famous neo-classical style villa that hides a garden populated by pink flamingos. Legend has it that they are the reincarnated souls of Milanese nobles, condemned to wander for eternity. Observable from the gratings outside, these birds take on an eerie appearance at dusk, when their sinuous movements seem to follow a macabre dance, guided by music that only they can hear.
📍Where: 7 Capuchin Street.