Cagliari Cathedral
Encyclopedia
The Cathedra of Cagliari is a church in Cagliari
, Sardinia
, Italy
.
The church was built in the 13th century in Pisane-Romanesque style, obtaining the cathedral status in 1258. In the 17th and 18th centuries it was renovated along Baroque lines. In the 1930s it finally received the current façade, in a Neo-Romanesque style, inspired to the Cathedral of Pisa.
in their stronghold overlooking the city, Castel di Castro. It had a square plan, with a nave and two aisles, the latter having cross vaults, while the nave had a wooden ceiling. In 1258, after the Pisans had destroyed the capital of the Giudicato of Cagliari
, Santa Igia
, and of its cathedral, it became the seat of the diocese of Cagliari.
In the 14th century the transept
was built, by which the cathedral obtained a Latin cross plan, and the two side entrances. The façade also obtained a Gothic mullioned window and the bell tower was also modified. From the same period is the first chapel, in Italian Gothic style, in the transept's left arm. The right transept was completed after the conquest of Cagliari by the Aragonese
, and two further chapels were built.
In 1618 the presbytery
was elevated to build a sanctuary for several relics of martyrs. The interior and the façade were remade in Baroque
style in 1669-1704. A cupola was built at the center of the transept, and the latter's Gothic chapels were deleted.
The old façade was demolished in the early 20th cenyury, and replaced by a Neo-Romanesque one, along the same lines of the original design, during the 1930s.
of Guglielmo, a 12th century couple of pulpits by one Master Guglielmo, originally sculpted for the Cathedral of Pisa. It was carried to Cagliari in 1312 and placed in the nave, near to its third columns. In 1669 it was split in two, and the two pulpits placed in their current location. The four marble lions which supported the ambo are now placed at the feet of the presbytery's balaustrade. Sculptures include scenes from the New Testament
.
Other artworks include a 15th century Flemish triptych (also known as Triptych of Clement VII), attributed to Rogier Van der Weyden, the Baroque funerary monument to Bernardo de La Cabra, archbishop of Cagliari, who died in the plague of 1655, while the left transept houses a 14th chapel and the Mausoleum of the Aragonese King Martin I of Sicily
, built in 1676-1680. The latter had died during the conquest of Sardinia
in the early 15th century.
In the crpyt is the Sanctuary of the Martyrs, home to 179 niches with relics of Cagliari's martyrs found during excavations in the 17th century near the Basilica of San Saturnino
. The sanctuary has three chapels with Baroque decorations.
Cagliari
Cagliari is the capital of the island of Sardinia, a region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name Casteddu literally means castle. It has about 156,000 inhabitants, or about 480,000 including the outlying townships : Elmas, Assemini, Capoterra, Selargius, Sestu, Monserrato, Quartucciu, Quartu...
, Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
The church was built in the 13th century in Pisane-Romanesque style, obtaining the cathedral status in 1258. In the 17th and 18th centuries it was renovated along Baroque lines. In the 1930s it finally received the current façade, in a Neo-Romanesque style, inspired to the Cathedral of Pisa.
History
The church was built by the PisansRepublic of Pisa
The Republic of Pisa was a de facto independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa during the late tenth and eleventh centuries. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated Mediterranean and Italian trade for a century before being surpassed and...
in their stronghold overlooking the city, Castel di Castro. It had a square plan, with a nave and two aisles, the latter having cross vaults, while the nave had a wooden ceiling. In 1258, after the Pisans had destroyed the capital of the Giudicato of Cagliari
Giudicato of Cagliari
The Giudicato of Cagliari was one of the four Sardinian giudicati of the Middle Ages. It covered the entire south and central east portion of the island and was composed of thirteen subdivisions called curatoriae. To its north and west lay Arborea and north and on the east lay Gallura and Logudoro...
, Santa Igia
Santa Igia
Santa Igia was a city in Sardinia, in what is now Italy, which existed from the 9th century AD to 1258, when it was destroyed by the Pisane troops...
, and of its cathedral, it became the seat of the diocese of Cagliari.
In the 14th century the transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
was built, by which the cathedral obtained a Latin cross plan, and the two side entrances. The façade also obtained a Gothic mullioned window and the bell tower was also modified. From the same period is the first chapel, in Italian Gothic style, in the transept's left arm. The right transept was completed after the conquest of Cagliari by the Aragonese
Kingdom of Aragon
The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain...
, and two further chapels were built.
In 1618 the presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
was elevated to build a sanctuary for several relics of martyrs. The interior and the façade were remade in Baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
style in 1669-1704. A cupola was built at the center of the transept, and the latter's Gothic chapels were deleted.
The old façade was demolished in the early 20th cenyury, and replaced by a Neo-Romanesque one, along the same lines of the original design, during the 1930s.
Artworks
In the interior, the main attraction is the ambonAmbon (liturgy)
The Ambon or Ambo is a projection coming out from the soleas in an Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic church. The ambon stands directly in front of the Holy Doors...
of Guglielmo, a 12th century couple of pulpits by one Master Guglielmo, originally sculpted for the Cathedral of Pisa. It was carried to Cagliari in 1312 and placed in the nave, near to its third columns. In 1669 it was split in two, and the two pulpits placed in their current location. The four marble lions which supported the ambo are now placed at the feet of the presbytery's balaustrade. Sculptures include scenes from the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
.
Other artworks include a 15th century Flemish triptych (also known as Triptych of Clement VII), attributed to Rogier Van der Weyden, the Baroque funerary monument to Bernardo de La Cabra, archbishop of Cagliari, who died in the plague of 1655, while the left transept houses a 14th chapel and the Mausoleum of the Aragonese King Martin I of Sicily
Martin I of Sicily
Martin I of Sicily , called "The Younger", was King of Sicily from 1390 to 1409.Martin's father was the future King Martin I of Aragon, and his grandparents were King Peter IV of Aragon and Eleanor of Sicily. In 1389/1390/February, 1392 he married Maria of Sicily, born in 1362/1363...
, built in 1676-1680. The latter had died during the conquest of Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
in the early 15th century.
In the crpyt is the Sanctuary of the Martyrs, home to 179 niches with relics of Cagliari's martyrs found during excavations in the 17th century near the Basilica of San Saturnino
Basilica of San Saturnino
The Basilica of San Saturnino is a Palaeo-Christian church in Cagliari, southern Sardinia, Italy.-History:The church is mentioned for the first time in the early 6th century. This church had been likely erected near the burial place of St...
. The sanctuary has three chapels with Baroque decorations.