This little octagonal building once stood at the centre of Milan’s large, rectangular leper hospital, on a spot previously occupied by the Church of Our Lady of Good Health (Santa Maria della Sanità). It was built between 1585 and 1592 by Pellegrino Tibaldi at the behest of Archbishop Charles Borromeo. The Serlian arches of the eight sides were originally open, allowing the invalids to follow the religious functions from their beds around the sides of the huge quadrangle (the Lazzaretto was the largest building in Milan).
