★ 19 Duomo di Cefalù (Cefalù Cathedral)

The cathedral was built in a long-populated area, as attested by the presence of a Roman road and a Paleo-Christian mosaic. Construction began in 1131, the apse mosaics were begun in 1145, and the sarcophagi that Roger II provided for his tomb and that of his wife were put in place the same year.
After 1172 the church suffered a period of decline. In 1215 Frederick II of Hohenstaufen moved the two sarcophagi to the Cathedral of Palermo. Construction of the cathedral was resumed soon after, the façade being completed in 1240. The cathedral was consecrated in 1267 by Rodolphe de Chevrières, Bishop of Albano.
In 1472 a portico, by Ambrogio da Como, was added between the two towers of the facade.

Architecture

The cathedral is preceded by a large terraced parvis, which was originally a cemetery. According to tradition, it was created with earth brought from Jerusalem, which was believed to have qualities that caused the rapid mummification of corpses.
The façade is characterized by two large Norman towers with mullioned windows, each surmounted by a small spire added in the 15th century. Each spire is different: one has a square plan surrounded by flame-shaped merlons, the latter symbolizing the Papal authority and the mitre; the other has an octagonal plan and Ghibelline merlons, symbolizing the royal and temporal power.
The 15th-century portico has three arches, the two outer being pointed, supported by four columns and vaulting ribs. Under the portico is the Porta Regum (Kings' Door), with a finely decorated marble portal flanked by wall paintings.
The interior of the cathedral is on the Latin cross plan, divided into a nave and two aisles by arcades of antique columns: fourteen in pink granite and two in cipolin. The bases and capitals are from the 2nd century AD. Two large capitals supporting the triumphal arch of the nave were probably made by a Sicilian workshop in the mid-12th century.

The roof of the nave was lowered, as can be seen from the exterior of the building. The transept is higher than both the nave and aisles. While parts of the building are barrel-vaulted and parts have an open timber roof, the presbytery has a ribbed vault of stone.
Beyond the crossing, the church is unusual in combining a style that is essentially Romanesque in its massive simple forms with the Gothic pointed arch. This feature is also seen in Monreale Cathedral. It is a forerunner of the Gothic style which was to develop in the region of Paris within a few years.
The…