Cefalù Cathedral
context 3

The senses tell the context 3

sight
A majestic rock mass

The Cefalù Cathedral stands out on a terrace perched on the imposing rock mass stretching out towards the sea and embraced by the jagged peaks of the Sicilian Apennines between the Nebrodi and Madonie mountains. If we look at the rest of the landscape, a sequence of silhouettes comes to life, built at different times and hierarchically dependent on the cathedral. These include the cloister, the bishop’s palace, the seminary with its adjoining courtyard and the Turniale, which dates from a later period, and are distributed along the northern side of the church. The latter appears as a large embankment functioning as a churchyard, also used as a burial place.

The chapel of san Castrense: an important renaissance work

Worship services

The side aisles

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

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

The cemetery of kings

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

A chapel by an unknown designer based on repeated symmetries

A tree full of life

Layers of different cultures decorate the external apses

Roger II of hauteville: a sovereign protected by God

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

The mosaics of the apses

Transformations over the centuries

The Virgin Hodegetria

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

The lost chapel

Norman religious architecture with islamic influences in Sicily

The original design

The towers facing the facade used as bell towers

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

The stone bible

The construction of Monreale Cathedral: between myth and history

The chapel of St. Benedict

The rediscovered chapel

Beyond the harmony of proportions

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

The southern portico

A mixture of styles pervades the floor decorations

The chorus: beating heart of the cathedral

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

The area of the Sanctuary

Characteristics of religious architecture in the romanesque period

The beginning of the construction site

Survey of the royal tombs

The towers and the western facade

The Great Restoration

The Chapel of the Kings

A space between the visible and the invisible

The balance between architecture and light

The transformations of the hall through the centuries

The mosaics of the presbytery

The Bible carved in stone

A palimpsest of history

The Kings’ Cathedrals

The medieval city amidst monasticism and feudal aristocracy

Roger II’s strategic design

The Great Presbytery: a unique space for the cathedral

A polysemy of high-level artistic forms and content

Gardens and architecture as a backdrop to the city of Palermo

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

The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene

Under the crosses of the Bema

A cloister of accentuated stylistic variety

The dialogue between the architectures of the monumental complex

Two initially similar towers, varied over time

Squaring the circle

The king’s mark

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

Ecclesia munita

Cefalù: settlement evidence through time

The Cathedral over the centuries

From the Mosque to the Cathedral

The longest aisle

The liturgical spaces of the protesis and the diaconicon

Porphyry sarcophagi: royalty and power

The Gualtiero Cathedral

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

Artistic elements in Peter’s ship

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

The senses tell Context 1

The cultural substrate through time

The decorated facade

A controversial interpretation

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

Mosaic decoration

Palermo: the happiest city

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

A new Cathedral

A Northern population

The chystro: a place between earth and sky

Interior decorations

A remarkable ceiling