The Oratorio dei Disciplini in Clusone has one of the finest medieval Danza Macabra (Dance of Death) frescoes in Europe: a 1485 fresco covering the exterior facade, depicting Death (as a crowned skeleton) leading pope, emperor, merchant, soldier, and peasant in a dance — the message being that death comes for everyone regardless of rank. The painting's quality and state of preservation rival the more famous Dance of Death frescoes in Basel and Paris. Clusone (population 8,500, 648m) also has a Fanzago astronomical clock (1583) on the Palazzo Comunale that tracks hours, months, moon phases, planetary positions, and eclipses — still functioning after 440 years. The Val Seriana behind Clusone leads to the Presolana pass and some of the best skiing and hiking in the Bergamasque pre-Alps. Lombardy →
Plan my Lombardy trip →Oratorio dei Disciplini — Danza Macabra (1485): The exterior fresco — Death presides over a horizontal parade of victims from every social class. Above: the Triumph of Death (three sarcophagi with pope, emperor, and bishop — worms and snakes emerging). Inside the oratory: more frescoes of the Passion. Free to view the exterior (the best part). Interior by arrangement. Orologio Planetario Fanzago (1583): On the facade of the Palazzo Comunale in Piazza dell'Orologio — the astronomical clock shows time, date, lunar phases, and planetary positions. Still working. The centro storico: Stone streets, medieval porticoes, Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta (baroque, frescoed interior). Val Seriana: Above Clusone — the road climbs to Passo della Presolana (1,297m — skiing, hiking, and one of the best panoramic passes in the pre-Alps).
Getting there: SAB bus from Bergamo (1h, frequent). By car: 35min from Bergamo, 1.5h from Milan. Stay: €45-80/night. Eat: Mas-cì (€25-35 — Bergamasque mountain cuisine, polenta taragna, casoncelli). Combine with: Bergamo Alta (35min), Val Seriana (continuing up the valley), Lake Iseo (30min — Monte Isola), Presolana (ski/hike, 20min above Clusone).