Fr. melezet - Località Pian del Colle, 10052 Bardonecchia
The chapel of San Sisto is located in Pian del Colle, near Melezet, at the entrance of the Valle Stretta. Built at the end of the 15th century, the small rural chapel is set in a panoramic position and is adorned both externally and internally with fresco cycles created between 1475 and 1546.
On the outside, the facade, protected by a large wooden overhang, features a fragmentary Last Judgment, executed with a setup similar to the analogous iconographic theme present in Jouvenceaux, attributed to the so-called Master of Savoulx, a painter linked to the Serra of Pinerolo environment active in the parishes of Savoulx and Rochemolles in the early decades of the 16th century.
Inside, on the southern wall, there are depictions of the Annunciation, Saint Christopher, and Saint Sebastian, created in 1475 on the commission of Matheus André and attributed to the hand of Bartolomeo and Sebastiano Serra.
The back wall, separated from the prayer hall by a wooden railing, hosts the main iconographic theme: the scenes of the life of Pope Saint Sixtus II.
Distributed over several registers, the scenes were created between the late 15th and early 16th centuries and depict the life and martyrdom of the pontiff, which occurred under the reign of Valerian.
On the northern wall, finally, there is a Crucifixion dated to 1546.
It should be noted that at the center of the altar, corresponding to a decoration simulating a precious brocade fabric, was originally placed the altarpiece of Saint Sixtus, the work of an anonymous sculptor known as the Master of the Madonna of Savoulx, created around 1470/80 and now housed at the Museum of Alpine Religious Art in Melezet.
The chapel can be visited with the "Chiese Porte Aperte" automated opening system.
