Cefalù Cathedral
the church hall

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

In every corner of the Temple, we bear witness to an intimate dialogue between religion and architecture pervaded by alternating colours that blend together, giving only an apparent sense of homogeneity.
The stained-glass windows made in the early 1990s by the Palermo artist Michele Canzoneri , capture our attention, sending us back in time with the narration of biblical themes . Artistically decorated transparent panels were inserted in the splayed single-lancet windows of the naves and in the large window of the façade. Consisting of a combination of various forms of blown glass, in turn enriched with acrylic pigments, they replaced the previous non-valuable fixtures, from ancient lead sheets to more recent ones made of wooden material. Looking up from the aisles is a mystical path, which elevates us towards an intimate link with the Word of God. It begins with the fourteen pointed windows overlooking the central nave, with seven windows on each side, symbolically referring to the days of the Creation. The theme presented in the side aisles is echoed in the rich and vibrant narrative rhythm of the nine representations on each of the single-lancet windows on the walls. The Cathedral, which had remained unfinished over the centuries, was brought back to life with atmospheres typical of medieval construction sites, during the major restoration project opened in the 1980s.

Survey of the royal tombs

The balance between architecture and light

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

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

Ecclesia munita

Mosaic decoration

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

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

The longest aisle

A mixture of styles pervades the floor decorations

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

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

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

The rediscovered chapel

The Great Presbytery: a unique space for the cathedral

The medieval city amidst monasticism and feudal aristocracy

The Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene

The Chapel of the Kings

The chystro: a place between earth and sky

The southern portico

The Bible carved in stone

The construction of Monreale Cathedral: between myth and history

The Great Restoration

Palermo: the happiest city

Gardens and architecture as a backdrop to the city of Palermo

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

The towers and the western facade

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

Porphyry sarcophagi: royalty and power

The mosaics of the presbytery

A new Cathedral

Cefalù: settlement evidence through time

Roger II of hauteville: a sovereign protected by God

The mosaics of the apses

The beginning of the construction site

The side aisles

A tree full of life

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

A remarkable ceiling

The towers facing the facade used as bell towers

Two initially similar towers, varied over time

The liturgical spaces of the protesis and the diaconicon

The transformations of the hall through the centuries

Transformations over the centuries

Worship services

Artistic elements in Peter’s ship

The dialogue between the architectures of the monumental complex

From the Mosque to the Cathedral

Beyond the harmony of proportions

The chapel of san Castrense: an important renaissance work

Norman religious architecture with islamic influences in Sicily

Interior decorations

Squaring the circle

The area of the Sanctuary

A palimpsest of history

The Gualtiero Cathedral

The chapel of St. Benedict

Characteristics of religious architecture in the romanesque period

The senses tell Context 1

Under the crosses of the Bema

The cemetery of kings

A controversial interpretation

The Cathedral over the centuries

The original design

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

A polysemy of high-level artistic forms and content

The Kings’ Cathedrals

The cultural substrate through time

The Virgin Hodegetria

The chorus: beating heart of the cathedral

A cloister of accentuated stylistic variety

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

The decorated facade

The king’s mark

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

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

A chapel by an unknown designer based on repeated symmetries

A space between the visible and the invisible

The stone bible

The lost chapel

Layers of different cultures decorate the external apses

Roger II’s strategic design

A Northern population