Main nave 2

The second span is dedicated to Isaac, son of Abraham, who is depicted in relief and painted in the keystone of the vault (late 15th century) .

On the pillars the Apostles sculpted by Tommaso Rodari are St. Matteo to the north, St. Bartolomeo to the south.

An important inscription is engraved on the northern pillar, at the height of the gilded arm holding the lamp, on the half-column facing the tapestry: it bears the date of 1451, that is repeated further down in red. 

1451 is the year of the resumption of the construction of the Duomo, when the spans towards the square were started, using Musso white marble instead of Olcio black marble for the coverings.

The tapestries facing each other are thematically linked: Cain killing Abel  and The sacrifice of Isaac  are Old-Testament prefigurations of the sacrifice of Jesus, the innocent victim. They were commissioned by the Compagnia del Ss., Sacramento, as it can be seen from the image of the chalice in the highest part of the cloth. They were made on the design of the Florentine painter Alessandro Allori (1597-1598).

The paintings of the vault by Gabetta and Fontana (1839) represent:

St. Nazaro martyr and St. Filippo Neri priest

St. Sebastiano martyr and St. Giuliana virgin and martyr

St. Eusebio 7th Bishop of Como and St. Antonio the Abbot

St. Donnino martyr and St. Fedele martyr