Apses and transept
Cefalù Cathedral

The king’s mark

The interior of the spaces of the presbytery area and the transept correspond to the volume, as designed by Roger’s original project. he difference between this part of the building and the other, consisting of the naves , is the large triumphal arch , visible in its original height, on the transept side, and reduced by a sub-arch on nave side.
The transverse arm must have been the most emblematic place in the Cathedral: in this area, Roger II had the two sarcophagi made, now in Palermo Cathedral, which have left an imprint on the floor. The front of the transept leading into the apsidal spaces is characterised by the typical overlapping columns placed in angular niches .
At the backs of the two walls , which divide the three apses, on the eastern front of the transept, there is a sculptural group of the Annunciation , as well as, a fresco of Madonna Enthroned on the opposite side, evidence of the decorations inserted over time.
The space was originally tripartite due to the presence, in the median area, of marble barriers with mosaic inlays that delimited the choir area.

The dialogue between the architectures of the monumental complex

The Gualtiero Cathedral

A mixture of styles pervades the floor decorations

A remarkable ceiling

The chapel of St. Benedict

The king’s mark

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

Under the crosses of the Bema

The Kings’ Cathedrals

The beginning of the construction site

Artistic elements in Peter’s ship

The chapel of san Castrense: an important renaissance work

Porphyry sarcophagi: royalty and power

The chorus: beating heart of the cathedral

Worship services

The longest aisle

The Great Presbytery: a unique space for the cathedral

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

The Cathedral over the centuries

The mosaics of the apses

The Virgin Hodegetria

The area of the Sanctuary

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

The mosaics of the presbytery

The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene

The cemetery of kings

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

The senses tell Context 1

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

Transformations over the centuries

A polysemy of high-level artistic forms and content

Gardens and architecture as a backdrop to the city of Palermo

From the Mosque to the Cathedral

The chystro: a place between earth and sky

The Chapel of the Kings

The stone bible

Norman religious architecture with islamic influences in Sicily

Layers of different cultures decorate the external apses

Survey of the royal tombs

The rediscovered chapel

Roger II’s strategic design

Squaring the circle

Cefalù: settlement evidence through time

The construction of Monreale Cathedral: between myth and history

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

The decorated facade

A controversial interpretation

The transformations of the hall through the centuries

The medieval city amidst monasticism and feudal aristocracy

A space between the visible and the invisible

A tree full of life

Palermo: the happiest city

The lost chapel

The towers facing the facade used as bell towers

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

The Bible carved in stone

Interior decorations

The cultural substrate through time

Characteristics of religious architecture in the romanesque period

The southern portico

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

A cloister of accentuated stylistic variety

The balance between architecture and light

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

Roger II of hauteville: a sovereign protected by God

The towers and the western facade

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

A new Cathedral

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

Ecclesia munita

The liturgical spaces of the protesis and the diaconicon

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

The Great Restoration

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

Mosaic decoration

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

A chapel by an unknown designer based on repeated symmetries

Two initially similar towers, varied over time

The side aisles

The original design

A palimpsest of history

A Northern population

Beyond the harmony of proportions