The most common theory, which attributes the sculptural work to workers of different origins, has been countered by a more recent hypothesis alleging that the decorations were made by a single team of master stone masons who came to Sicily from the south of France.
he aisles, the sides of which form a perfect square (47×47 m), are marked by twenty-six ogival arches, supported by 228 smooth, inlaid, coupled columns. The columns’ bases bear motifs of stylised leaves, rosettes, lion’s paws, beasts, men and animals in groups, frogs and lizards. Capitals
rest on the columns, decorated and historiated with biblical episodes, followed New Testament and genre
scenes, in addition to those inspired by medieval symbolism
and bestiaries.
The sculptural work also alternates figurative decorations with mythological, botanical, symbolic and allegorical themes and floral elements that, not present in the cloister garden
, instead remain impressed in the marble.
Among the scenes sculpted on the capitals, the following are depicted: the Original Sin, the Expulsion (of the progenitors) from Paradise and the killing of Abel, taken from the Old Testament; the Resurrection of Christ, the Annunciation, the Flight into Egypt, the Presentation in the Temple, the Visitation of Mary and Elizabeth, St. Joseph receiving the Announcement from the Angel, the Annunciation to the Shepherds and the Adoration of the Magi from the New Testament. There is also a special “Cycle of the Months”, arranged according to the four seasons: winter, spring, summer, autumn. In the south-west corner, the Mission of the Apostles is depicted and, in the south-east corner, isolated figures representing the church and the prophets are shown.
A scene with great political significance is that of the “dedication”. Mirroring what is already depicted in the mosaic cycle in the apse area inside the Cathedral, King William is depicted kneeling while offering the model of the Cathedral as a gift to the Virgin Mary.
The classical and Romanesque Provençal style is combined with an Islamic architectural style, which is reflected in the ogival arches
, which have a characteristic archway made up of an all-round curb, with a truncated base.
The architectural modifications ti the cathedral building after the death of Roger II and the transformations of the cloister
The columns of the nave: the meticulous study of the overall order
Norman religious architecture with islamic influences in Sicily
Squaring the circle
The links between the hauteville family and the monastic orders in Sicily
The stone bible
The southern portico
The chapel of St. Benedict
The beginning of the construction site
The Cefalù cathedral: a construction yard undergoing a change between a surge of faith and control over the territory
Roger II of hauteville: a sovereign protected by God
The balance between architecture and light
A palimpsest of history
The Kings’ Cathedrals
A polysemy of high-level artistic forms and content
Gardens and architecture as a backdrop to the city of Palermo
Mosaic decoration
The Gualtiero Cathedral
Artistic elements in Peter’s ship
Thirteenth-century iconography decorates the nave’s wooden ceiling, designed with new solutions
A remarkable ceiling
Two initially similar towers, varied over time
The transformations of the hall through the centuries
The senses tell Context 1
The Bible carved in stone
The Great Presbytery: a unique space for the cathedral
Transformations over the centuries
The chorus: beating heart of the cathedral
Ecclesia munita
The original design
The side Portico: a combination of elegance and lightness of form
Beyond the harmony of proportions
A chapel by an unknown designer based on repeated symmetries
The dialogue between the architectures of the monumental complex
Porphyry sarcophagi: royalty and power
A cloister of accentuated stylistic variety
The rediscovered chapel
The longest aisle
The marble portal: an intimate dialogue between complex ornamental aspects and formal structure
The paradisiacal “Conca d’oro” that embraces Palermo: a name with countless faces through time
Biblical themes enlivened by the dazzling light of the stained – glass windows overlooking the naves
The area of the Sanctuary
The lost chapel
The mosaics of the presbytery
The Chapel of the Kings
A new Cathedral
A Northern population
The decorated facade
Cefalù: settlement evidence through time
From the Mosque to the Cathedral
The construction of Monreale Cathedral: between myth and history
Survey of the royal tombs
The chapel of san Castrense: an important renaissance work
A mixture of styles pervades the floor decorations
Palermo: the happiest city
The chapel of the crucifix: an artistic casket based on a previous model
The chystro: a place between earth and sky
Under the crosses of the Bema
Worship services
The medieval city amidst monasticism and feudal aristocracy
A space between the visible and the invisible
The plasticism of the main portico and Bonanno Pisano’s Monumental Bronze Door
The cultural substrate through time
Layers of different cultures decorate the external apses
A controversial interpretation
Characteristics of religious architecture in the romanesque period
The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene
The towers and the western facade
The king’s mark
The liturgical spaces of the protesis and the diaconicon
The side aisles
The towers facing the facade used as bell towers
Roger II’s strategic design
From the main gate to the aisles: an invitation to a journey of faith
Tempus fugit: a strategic project implemented in a short period of time
A compositional design that combines nordic examples with new artistic languages, over the centuries
The Great Restoration
The Virgin Hodegetria
A tree full of life
MiC – Ministero della Cultura
Legge 77/2006 - Misure Speciali di Tutela e Fruizione dei Siti Italiani di Interesse Culturale, Paesaggistico e Ambientale, inseriti nella “Lista Del Patrimonio Mondiale”, posti sotto la Tutela dell’ UNESCO Regione Siciliana.
Assessorato dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana, Dipartimento dei Beni Culturali e dell’Identità Siciliana.
Parco archeologico della Valle dei Templi di Agrigento.