CATANIA - Basilica Cattedrale di Sant'Agata

The cathedral, dedicated to the virgin and martyr Saint Agatha, patron saint of the city of Catania, preserves different styles: from Norman, to Baroque, to Neoclassicism. The church has been destroyed and rebuilt several times after the earthquakes that have occurred over time. The first construction dates back to the period 1086 - 1094 and was built on the ruins of the Terme Achilliane dating back to Roman times. The church has been destroyed and rebuilt several times after the earthquakes that have occurred over time. The first construction dates back to the period 1086 - 1094 and was built on the ruins of the Terme Achilliane dating back to Roman times. The current building is the work of the architect Girolamo Palazzotto, who mainly took care of the interior, while Giovanni Battista Vaccarini designed and supervised the works on the facade with interventions and modifications that lasted from 1734 to 1761. The works for the construction of the building lasted throughout the 18th century and continued even after the cathedral was reopened for worship. The churchyard is accessed via a short marble staircase that culminates in a wrought iron gate decorated with 10 bronze saints. The churchyard is divided from the Piazza del Duomo by a white stone balustrade decorated with five large statues of saints in Carrara marble. The facade is adorned with marble statues of Saint Agatha in the center on the central door, Saint Euplio on the right and Saint Berillo on the left. The dome, located on the crossing, dates back to 1802 and was designed by Carmelo Battaglia and commissioned by Bishop Corrado Maria Deodato Moncada. It is equipped with columns and large windows that illuminate the interior. Between 1867 and 1869, the architect Carmelo Sciuto Patti built the current bell tower and the lantern of the dome. The elevations of the altars in both naves are made up of paintings characterized by monumental Baroque-style frames in carved and gilded wood. In the right western transept is the funerary monument of the bishop, architect of the last reconstruction of the place of worship, Monsignor Pietro Galletti. It is the most sumptuous monument in the church, made of marble, richly decorated and inlaid. At the end of the right nave is the chapel most dear to all the people of Catania, an authentic treasure chest of art. An elaborate wrought iron gate, the work of Salvatore Sciuto Patti from 1926, protects the majestic room dedicated to Saint Agatha. Clockwise, three different artistic expressions (architecture, religious art, funerary statuary), works by the artist from Messina Antonello Freri, created in the two-year period 1495 - 1496. The central nave ends with a deep Norman apse whose interior is decorated with a cycle of frescoes by the Roman painter Giovanni Battista Corradini commissioned by Innocent Massimo and dating back to 1628. The presbytery, preceded by a flight of stairs that delimits it at the front, houses the modern high altar and the pulpit, both created in 2000. Along the walls of the apse, instead, is the valuable baroque wooden choir, created by the Neapolitan sculptor Scipione di Guido at the end of the 16th century. In front of the altar dedicated to Santa Febronia, there is the funerary monument of the Catanian musician Vincenzo Bellini whose body was transferred on October 23, 1876 from the Parisian cemetery of Père-Lachaise. The sculptures made of Carrara marble and bronze are the work of Giovanni Battista Tassara. Wikipedia source: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattedr... Music: Youtube Library Filmed with PANASONIC S5II and INSTA360 X4 Shooting date: November 2024 #ragusa #sicily #sicilia #italia #italy