Cefalù Cathedral
the facade and the portico

The decorated facade

The main façade, rising to the west, is enclosed between two imposing square towers with a pyramid-shaped apex. They are a reminder of its original function as Ecclesia Munita , a fortress church, with a series of multi-level walkways, now uncovered, built within the thickness of the walls, connecting the two towers to the transept, in defence of the Cathedral.The front elevation of the religious building, restored at the end of the 15th century, is home to the protruding body of the tetrastyle portico , built by magister Ambrosius da Como . It was divided into three large arches, with two lateral ones with pointed arches and a central full centre one , supported by four columns. The dynamism of the ribbed cross vaults which fill the roof of the portico echoes the decorations of the ancient gateway , preserved over the centuries.
In addition to the monumental marble portal that ennobles the façade, whose creation dates back to the initial cathedral project, there are two further orders. The first order is marked by an elaborate row of four blind pointed arches on each side, which intersect each other, interrupted only at the centre by a large window bearing an inscription dated 1240, referring to Giovanni Panittera , a testimony to his work on the elevation of the Cathedral.
The last level differs from the one below due to the presence of decorative elements of simpler workmanship.

The medieval city amidst monasticism and feudal aristocracy

Cefalù: settlement evidence through time

A new Cathedral

The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene

The chapel of san Castrense: an important renaissance work

The chystro: a place between earth and sky

The stone bible

The marble portal: an intimate dialogue between complex ornamental aspects and formal structure

A Northern population

Layers of different cultures decorate the external apses

The cultural substrate through time

Worship services

The plasticism of the main portico and Bonanno Pisano’s Monumental Bronze Door

The towers and the western facade

The rediscovered chapel

The construction of Monreale Cathedral: between myth and history

A polysemy of high-level artistic forms and content

The liturgical spaces of the protesis and the diaconicon

Transformations over the centuries

The architectural modifications ti the cathedral building after the death of Roger II and the transformations of the cloister

Thirteenth-century iconography decorates the nave’s wooden ceiling, designed with new solutions

A mixture of styles pervades the floor decorations

The side Portico: a combination of elegance and lightness of form

The Great Restoration

The Gualtiero Cathedral

The mosaics of the apses

A compositional design that combines nordic examples with new artistic languages, over the centuries

A palimpsest of history

The links between the hauteville family and the monastic orders in Sicily

The Virgin Hodegetria

Norman religious architecture with islamic influences in Sicily

The senses tell Context 1

The chorus: beating heart of the cathedral

The side aisles

A tree full of life

A space between the visible and the invisible

The Great Presbytery: a unique space for the cathedral

Two initially similar towers, varied over time

From the Mosque to the Cathedral

The decorated facade

Ecclesia munita

The mosaics of the presbytery

The paradisiacal “Conca d’oro” that embraces Palermo: a name with countless faces through time

Gardens and architecture as a backdrop to the city of Palermo

Under the crosses of the Bema

Mosaic decoration

A controversial interpretation

The chapel of the crucifix: an artistic casket based on a previous model

A chapel by an unknown designer based on repeated symmetries

Squaring the circle

The transformations of the hall through the centuries

Interior decorations

Palermo: the happiest city

Artistic elements in Peter’s ship

The columns of the nave: the meticulous study of the overall order

Roger II of hauteville: a sovereign protected by God

The dialogue between the architectures of the monumental complex

Survey of the royal tombs

The beginning of the construction site

The southern portico

The balance between architecture and light

The cemetery of kings

Tempus fugit: a strategic project implemented in a short period of time

The original design

Biblical themes enlivened by the dazzling light of the stained – glass windows overlooking the naves

A cloister of accentuated stylistic variety

Characteristics of religious architecture in the romanesque period

Porphyry sarcophagi: royalty and power

A remarkable ceiling

The Cathedral over the centuries

The Chapel of the Kings

The Bible carved in stone

The towers facing the facade used as bell towers

The lost chapel

The chapel of St. Benedict

The longest aisle

Beyond the harmony of proportions

From the main gate to the aisles: an invitation to a journey of faith

The Kings’ Cathedrals

Roger II’s strategic design

The Cefalù cathedral: a construction yard undergoing a change between a surge of faith and control over the territory

The area of the Sanctuary

The king’s mark