Genoa Cathedral

Coordinates: 44°24′26.92″N 8°55′53.83″E / 44.4074778°N 8.9316194°E / 44.4074778; 8.9316194
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Genoa Cathedral
Cattedrale Metropolitana di San Lorenzo
Year consecrated
1118
Location
LocationGenoa, Italy
Geographic coordinates44°24′26.92″N 8°55′53.83″E / 44.4074778°N 8.9316194°E / 44.4074778; 8.9316194
Architecture
StyleGothic
Groundbreaking1110
Completed17th century
Interior of the cathedral
Genoa cathedral (the altar)
The Martyrdom of St. Lawrence, in the presbytery vault, by Lazzaro Tavarone
Lion on left of entrance stairs

Genoa Cathedral or Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Lawrence (

Archbishop of Genoa. The cathedral was consecrated by Pope Gelasius II in 1118 and was built between the twelfth century and the fourteenth century as fundamentally a medieval building, with some later additions. Secondary naves and side covers are of Romanesque style and the main facade is Gothic
from the early thirteenth century, while capitals and columns with interior corridors date from the early fourteenth century. The bell tower and dome were built in the sixteenth century.

History

Excavations under the pavement and in the area in front of today's west front have brought to light walls and pavements of Roman age as well as pre-Christian

Twelve Apostles was built, which was in turn flanked and replaced by a new cathedral dedicated to Saint Lawrence, in Romanesque style. Money came from the successful enterprises of the Genoese fleets in the Crusades
.

The first cathedral, now the

matronei
added. The Romanesque structures remained pretty untouched, and frescoes of religious subject were also added.

Various altars and chapels have been erected between the 14th and 15th centuries. The small loggia on the north-eastern tower of the façade was built in 1455; the opposite one, in

Mannerist style, is from 1522. In 1550 the Perugian architect Galeazzo Alessi
was commissioned by the city magistrates to plan the reconstruction of the entire building; however, he executed only the covering of the nave and aisles, the pavement, the dome and the apse.

The construction of the cathedral finished in the 17th century. The dome and the medieval parts were restored in 1894–1900. The present 7 bells are tuned in the major scale of C#.

Among the artworks inside the church are ceiling frescoes in a chapel on the north by

Guglielmo Della Porta
.

The Museum of the Treasury lies under the cathedral and holds a collection of jewellery and silverware from 9 AD up to the present. Among the most important pieces are the sacred bowl (it:Sacro Catino) brought by Guglielmo Embriaco after the conquest of Caesarea and supposed to be the chalice used by Christ during the Last Supper; and the Cassa Processionale del Corpus Domini.[1][2]

War damage

Armour-piercing shell fired on 9 February 1941 in the nave of Genoa cathedral.

The cathedral had a fortunate escape on February 9, 1941, when the city was being shelled as part of Operation Grog. Because of a crew error where Midshipman Henry Hatfield aimed the gun the wrong way , the British battleship HMS Malaya fired a 381 mm (15.0 in) armour-piercing shell into the south-eastern corner of the nave. The relatively soft material failed to detonate the fuse and the shell is still there.[3]

The inscription, which gives thanks for the cathedral's escape reads:
QUESTA BOMBA LANCIATA DALLA FLOTTA INGLESE PUR SFONDANDO LE PARETI DI QUESTA INSIGNE CATTEDRALE QUI CADEVA INESPLOSA IL IX FEBBRAIO MCMXLI
A RICONOSCENZA PERENNE GENOVA CITTÀ DI MARIA VOLLE INCISA IN PIETRA LA MEMORIA DI TANTA GRAZIA
(This bomb, launched by the British Navy, though breaking through the walls of this great cathedral, fell here unexploded on February 9, 1941. In perpetual gratitude, Genoa, the City of Mary, desired to engrave in stone, the memory of such grace.)

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to San Lorenzo (Genoa).
  1. ^ Genoa in 4 Hour by Edizioni GMT in English
  2. ^ Website of the Museo del tesoro di San Lorenzo(in Italian)
  3. ^ "Obituary:Commander Henry Hatfield". Daily Telegraph. 4 July 2010. Retrieved 5 July 2010.

External links

  • Padovano, Aldo; Felice Volpe (2008). La grande storia di Genova Enciclopedia. Artemisia Progetti Editoriali. pp. 81–82.
  • Efthalia Rentetzi, Gli affreschi bizantini nella cattedrale di Genova. Una nuova lettura iconografica in“Arte |Documento” (2012).
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Genoa_Cathedral&oldid=1205381700"