Cathedral of Palermo in Italy, resort of Sicily
Rating: 8,4/10 (7451 votes)  The Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Palermo. Today, the relics of Saint Rosalia are kept here – patroness of the city. Also, the cathedral is the center of the Sicilian saint cult. In XII – The cathedral was rebuilt several times in the 18th century. Currently, in the architecture of the cathedral, several styles can be traced at once - – Arabic-Norman, Classical and Gothic. The cathedral gained fame thanks to the tombs of the kings of Sicily and the German emperors, during whose reign Sicily reached its heyday. Back in the IV century on the site of the cathedral there was a church consecrated in honor of the martyr Mamilian, which later was destroyed by vandals. In 604, under the Byzantines, a temple in honor of the Most Holy Theotokos was erected on the site of the old church. In 831, the city was captured by the Arabs, who turned the temple into a Friday mosque. In 1072 the city was taken over by the Normans, who consecrated a mosque in honor of the Virgin Mary. In 1154 Roger II was buried in the cathedral. Only the crypt and the left column of the south portico have survived from the original cathedral building. In the second half In the 12th century, a new cathedral was built on the site of the old cathedral. The interior of the building was a three-nave church with three apses. In the middle of the 13th century, the corners of the building were crowned with towers, and 10 years later, a sacristy was added to the southeastern part. The Sicilian kings and emperors from the House of Hohenstaufen found their last refuge in the cathedral. Frederick II and Henry the Sixth, and their spouses – Constance of Aragon and Constance of Norman. Remains of Roger II were moved here from the old cathedral. In XII – In the 13th century, the cathedral became the place of coronation of all Sicilian kings – Tancred, Henry the Sixth, Frederigo I, Manfred, Pedro III of Aragon and Frederigo II. In XIV – The construction of the cathedral continued in the 16th century. In 1342, the construction of the four corner towers of the building was completed, in 1352 the western Gothic portal was built. A southern portico with pointed arches in the Catalan Gothic style was created in the years 1426-1430. In the 15th century, a beautiful garden was laid out on the square adjacent to the southern facade. At the beginning of the 16th century, the altar part was decorated with a retablo with statues, which, unfortunately, were lost. In 1575, the cathedral square was fenced with a balustrade decorated with statues of saints. The reconstruction carried out in 1801 significantly changed the appearance of the cathedral. The interior of the cathedral has also undergone many changes – the carved wooden ceiling was replaced with a low vault. Imperial and royal sarcophagi created in the building a special `` memorial '' zone.  
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