Cappella di San Giovanni Gualberto
Chapel · Dolomites
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This wooden chapel at Passo Giau, built in 1968, is dedicated to San Giovanni Gualberto, the eleventh-century founder of the Vallombrosan Benedictine order and patron saint of Italy's forestry guard. Its steep pitched roof and small lateral bell tower give it the shape of a mountain hut. The chapel marks the traditional trailhead for the walk up to Forcella Giau and the Mondeval plateau.
The chapel stands at the saddle of Passo Giau, facing the Rifugio Passo Giau at 2,236 metres, right where the climb from Selva di Cadore crests after 9.9 km and 29 hairpin bends. That climb has proven decisive in the Giro d'Italia more than once, most recently in 2021, when Egan Bernal attacked in the pink jersey through cold rain and rode away from every rival. Its dedication reaches back to a Florentine nobleman born around 985. Giovanni Gualberto set out to avenge his older brother Ugo's murder, cornered the killer in Florence, and on Good Friday chose to spare him instead. He entered the Benedictines soon after, then broke away to found his own congregation at Vallombrosa, preaching against nepotism and the buying of church office. Popes held him in high esteem during his lifetime, and Celestine III canonized him in 1193.
What you see
The chiesetta stands in the meadow across from the Rifugio Passo Giau, dark timber against the grass, with the pass opening west to the Marmolada and Sella group and east to the Tofana di Rozes and Cristallo above Cortina d'Ampezzo.
part of: Cafés at the foot of the climbtrailheadgiro ditaliamountain chapel