"Cefalù Cathedral"

The cathedral was erected between 1131 and 1240 in the Norman architectural style, the island of Sicily having been conquered by the Normans in 1091.The cathedral was built in a long-populated area, as attested by the presence of a Roman road and a Paleo-Christian mosaic.

The cathedral is preceded by a large terraced parvis, which was originally a cemetery. According to tradition, it was created with earth brought from Jerusalem, which was believed to have qualities that caused the rapid mummification of corpses.

The façade is characterized by two large Norman towers with mullioned windows, each surmounted by a small spire added in the 15th century. Each spire is different: one has a square plan surrounded by flame-shaped merlons, the latter symbolizing the Papal authority and the mitre; the other has an octagonal plan and Ghibelline merlons, symbolizing the royal and temporal power.

The interior of the cathedral is on the Latin cross plan, divided into a nave and two aisles by arcades of antique columns: fourteen in pink granite and two in cipolin. The bases and capitals are from the 2nd century AD. Two large capitals supporting the triumphal arch of the nave were probably made by a Sicilian workshop in the mid-12th century. the church is unusual in combining a style that is essentially Romanesque in its massive simple forms with the Gothic pointed arch. This feature is also seen in Monreale Cathedral. It is a forerunner of the Gothic style which was to develop in the region of Paris within a few years.