Sacro Monte di Graglia
The Sacro Monte di Graglia is one of the numerous devotional places around the Italian Alps and it houses the Santuario di Nostra Signora di Loreto, one of the four major sanctuaries of the Biellese territory. Set in the Valle Elvo at 690 m on the sea level, the sanctuary is built near the Lauretana water industry. The complex is a stage of many devotional paths, which include the CoEur - In the heart of European paths and the Path of Saint Charles. History 1615: don Velotti's project The history of the Sacro Monte is related to the religious feelings of the early 17th century, when the idea of a "New Jerusalem" built in the neighbourhood was famous thanks to the Sacro Monte di Varallo. Don Andrea Velotti, the parish priest of Graglia had this idea in 1605, as he came back from the Holy Land. The project imagined the building of 100 chapels decorated with statues narrating several biblical episodes, from the Genesis to the Life of Jesus. The building began in 1616 and lasted eight years: in this period only 10 chapels were built and the whole project stopped when don Velotti died in 1624. 1654: Pietro Arduzzi's