The Cathedral of Saint Romulus is a roman catholic church in Fiesole

Fiesole

Fiesole is a town and comune of the province of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a famously scenic height above Florence, 8 km NE of that city...

, Tuscany

Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....

, central 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...

. Dedicated to Saint Romulus of Fiesole, the Romanesque

Romanesque architecture

Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...

 edifice was founded in Fiesole in 1028, when bishop Jacopo the Bavarian, decided to move the cathedral within the city's walls, dedicating it to St. Romulus, who had introduced the Christianism in Fiesole. It is the see

Episcopal See

An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...

 of the Diocese of Fiesole

Roman Catholic Diocese of Fiesole

The diocese of Fiesole is a Roman Catholic diocese in Tuscany, central Italy, whose episcopal see is the city of Fiesole. It is a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archbishopric of Florence.-History:...

.

Description

The church is on the basilica plan with a nave and two aisles separated by stone columns with capitals which are decorated with figures and animals. It has a raised 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....

 over the crypt

Crypt

In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....

 and truss

Truss

In architecture and structural engineering, a truss is a structure comprising one or more triangular units constructed with straight members whose ends are connected at joints referred to as nodes. External forces and reactions to those forces are considered to act only at the nodes and result in...

ed ceiling. The picturesque battlemented campanile was built in to 1213. The church was restored in 1256.

The interior is not much decorated, aside from the marble altar (1273) and two frescoes, depicting St. Benedict (c. 1420) and St. Sebastian by Pietro Perugino

Pietro Perugino

Pietro Perugino , born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance...

 (late 15th century). In the presbytery is a polyptych

Polyptych

A polyptych generally refers to a painting which is divided into sections, or panels. The terminology that follows is in relevance to the number of panels integrated into a particular piece of work: "diptych" describes a two-part work of art; "triptych" describes a three-part work; "tetraptych"...

 of the Three stories of Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas

Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...

, by Bicci di Lorenzo

Bicci di Lorenzo

Bicci di Lorenzo was an Italian painter and sculptor, active in Florence.He was born in Florence in 1373, the son of the painter, Lorenzo di Bicci, whose workshop he joined. He married in 1418, and in 1424 was registered in the Guild of Painters at Florence. His son, Neri di Bicci was also a...

, commissioned in 1450. In the Salutati Chapel is the funerary monument of bishop Leonardo Salutati, executed by Mino da Fiesole

Mino da Fiesole

Mino da Fiesole , also known as Mino di Giovanni, was an Italian sculptor from Poppi, Tuscany. He is noted for his portrait busts.-Career:...

. In the Canon's Chapel is a marble altar by Andrea Ferrucci

Andrea Ferrucci

Andrea Ferrucci , also known as Andrea di Piero Ferruzzi and as Andrea da Fiesole, was an Italian sculptor who was born in Fiesole, Italy in 1465...

 (1492-1494).

In the counter-façade is a huge statue of St. Romulus, by Giovanni della Robbia

Giovanni della Robbia

thumb|250px|Saint Sebastian, [[Musée du Louvre]], Paris.Giovanni della Robbia was an Italian Renaissance ceramic artist. He was the son of Andrea della Robbia and grandnephew of Luca della Robbia....

 (1521). The crypt's small columns have 11th century capitals, perhaps taken from the original construction. The decoration includes late Gothic medallions on the vault, while on the left wall is a cycle of the Stories of St. Romulus by Domenico Ghirlandaio

Domenico Ghirlandaio

Domenico Ghirlandaio was an Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. Among his many apprentices was Michelangelo.-Early years:Ghirlandaio's full name is given as Domenico di Tommaso di Currado di Doffo Bigordi...

's school. The bishops' funerary chapel has a 13th century icon attributed to one "Master of Bigallo", portraying the Madonna with Child (1215-1220).

Badia of Fiesole

The old cathedral was built, according to the tradition, to cover the site of the martyrdom of St. Romulus. Situated lower down on the hill-side, the church was converted into an Benedictine

Benedictine

Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...

 abbey and became known as the "Badia di Fiesole". The edifice was rebuilt in 1466 by a disciple of Filippo Brunelleschi

Filippo Brunelleschi

Filippo Brunelleschi was one of the foremost architects and engineers of the Italian Renaissance. He is perhaps most famous for inventing linear perspective and designing the dome of the Florence Cathedral, but his accomplishments also included bronze artwork, architecture , mathematics,...

. Its facade of the XI century is still preserved. It contains notable early works of Mino da Fiesole

Mino da Fiesole

Mino da Fiesole , also known as Mino di Giovanni, was an Italian sculptor from Poppi, Tuscany. He is noted for his portrait busts.-Career:...

. The abbey was closed in 1778.