After the restoration of the bell tower in 1726 by Giovanni Amico, numerous transformations were carried out from 1781, especially inside the Cathedral. While the initial project was the work of the royal architect Ferdinando Fuga, the work was carried out by the architect Venanzio Marvuglia, with m...

The crypt, from the Latin crypta meaning hidden, is an underground space, usually located under the floor of the presbytery, where the relics of saints or the tombs of eminent figures were kept. The crypt was more common in churches of the early medieval period when it was also used as a small chape...

The location of the tombs was originally in the area known as the "Cemetery of the Bishops", on the left side of the Presbytery of the Cathedral, where on the opposite side stood the "Cemetery of the Kings". Its current location is the result of a number of transformations which begun in the last de...

The Great Presbytery can be divided into three parts: the Presbytery itself, which is the part next to the hall of the faithful. The Anti-Presbytery and the Post-Presbytery. The Great Presbytery, the area surrounding the high altar where the presbyters are seated to worship, is composed of a double ...

The Great Presbytery can be divided into three parts: the Presbytery itself, which is the part next to the hall of the faithful. The Anti-Presbytery and the Post-Presbytery. The Great Presbytery, the area surrounding the high altar where the presbyters are seated to worship, is composed of a double ...

The Titulus of Palermo Cathedral was the space located at the end of the nave and before the main apse, where the Canons Regular took their seats in the choir and which contained both the bishop's chair and the royal seat. The sacristies of the Canons and Benefactors were located on the southern fro...

The Chapel of the Royal Tombs, inside the Palermo Cathedral, houses the tombs of the Norman Roger II, first king of Sicily, Constance of Hauteville and Henry VI of Swabia and their son Frederick II, together with his first wife Constance of Aragon. Four sarcophagi are placed in corresponding areas o...

Commissioned by Archbishop Philip Lopez y Royo during the renovation of the Cathedral during the last decades of the 18th century, the sundial was designed in 1794/95 by Giuseppe Piazzi, a Theatine priest, professor of Astronomy at the University of Palermo and director of the Astronomical Observato...

The barrel vault is a semi-circular roof made of brick, stone or stuccoed lintel, usually used as a ceiling for rectangular rooms. The lunettes are formed by other smaller barrel vaults that intersect the main vault at right angles in order to include rooms or windows inside. In the event that two b...

The nave is the main body of the religious building, intended for the assembly of the faithful. In the case of small churches, the nave is defined as a single room; for buildings of greater size and importance, the space is divided into several parts with a central nave or aisle and two or more sid...