Catania Duomo Cathedral
The Duomo cathedral in Catania centre
Address: Via Vittorio Emanuele II 163, Piazza Duomo
Price: Free admission.
Information: In the centre of the city, the cathedral of Catania
is dedicated to the memory of the martyred St. Agatha.
Originally, the Duomo was ordered built by Roger I,
the Norman king, but it was destroyed in the earthquake
of 1693 and had to be reconstructed. Its facade is
its most enduring architectural legacy, the work of
Gian Battista Vaccarini (1702-68), who redesigned
the city after the earthquake. For the granite columns
of the facade, the architect "removed" them
from the city's Roman amphitheater. Only the lovingly
crafted medieval apses, each made from lava, survived
the devastation of that earthquake.
The Duomo is quite easy to find and if you mix seeing this attraction in Catania with the local fish market which is on the other side of the piazza and with going to the local daily market which is no more than another 10 minutes walk, you can easily enjoy half an hour in the central part of the city centre.
The Duomo Cathedral in the city centre is not perhaps as spectacular as the Doumo in Milan but it still has a fascinating history and this is well worth the visit.
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