Amalfi Cathedral (; ) is a medieval

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

in the Piazza del Duomo,

Amalfi Amalfi (, , ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto (1,315 metres, 4,314 feet), surrounded by dramatic c ...

, Italy. It is dedicated to the

Apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Church stems from the Gospel of Jo ...

whose relics are kept here. Formerly the archiepiscopal seat of the Diocese of Amalfi, it has been since 1986 that of the Diocese of Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni. Begun in the 9th and 10th centuries, it has been added to and redecorated several times, overlaying Arab-Norman, Gothic,

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

elements, and finally a new 19th century Norman-Arab-Byzantine facade. The cathedral includes the adjoining 9th-century Basilica of the Crucifix. Leading from the basilica are steps into the Crypt of St. Andrew, where his relics can be found.

History

The first church, now the Diocesan Museum of Amalfi, was built in the 9th century on the ruins of a previous temple. A second church was built to the south in 10th century, and this is now the cathedral. By the 12th century the two churches formed a single 6 aisle Romanesque church, which was reduced to 5 in the 13th century to allow the construction of the Paradise Cloister, in the Arab-Norman style. The remains of St. Andrew were reportedly brought to Amalfi from Constantinople in 1206 during the

Fourth Crusade The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was a Latin Christian armed expedition called by Pope Innocent III. The stated intent of the expedition was to recapture the Muslim-controlled city of Jerusalem, by first defeating the powerful Egyptian Ayyubid S ...

by Cardinal Peter of Capua. In 1208, the crypt was completed and the relics were turned over to the church. It said that later on

manna Manna (, ; ), sometimes or archaically spelled Mahna or Mana, is described in the Bible and the Quran as an edible substance that God in Abrahamic religions, God bestowed upon the Israelites while they were wandering the desert during the 40-year ...

issued from the saint's bones. The bell tower was constructed between the 12th and 13th centuries in front of the first church, topped by an elaborate crown decorated with marble and majolica in the Arab-Norman style, also seen in other churches in southern Italy in this period. The chapels inside are variously Gothic and Renaissance, with the nave decorated in the Baroque style in the 18th century. In 1861, part of the facade collapsed, damaging the atrium. The whole front of the church was then rebuilt to a design by architect Errico Alvino in a richly decorated manner drawing on Italian Gothic and especially Arab-Norman styles, similar to but more ornate that the original, completed in 1891.

Architecture and fittings

Exterior

The front facade was rebuilt in the late 19th century in striped marble and stone, with a tall pediment decorated with mosaics, and a deep porch with windows of delicate Arab-Moorish tracery similar to, but more ornate than, the original. The tympanum's mosaics portray “The triumph of Christ” in a work created by Domenico Morelli and whose original designs are retained in the Town Hall. Sixty-two steps, wide and steep, lead up to the doors. Cast in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

before 1066, and signed by Simeon of Syria, the cathedral's bronze doors are the earliest in Italy of post-

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

manufacture. Begun in 1180, and completed over 100 years later, the Romanesque style

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...

is topped by a cluster of four small towers around a larger one, all decorated with brightly coloured

majolica In different periods of time and in different countries, the term ''majolica'' has been used for two distinct types of pottery. Firstly, from the mid-15th century onwards, ''maiolica'' was a type of pottery reaching Italy from Spain, Majorca a ...

tiles forming interlaced Gothic arches in an Arab-Norman style. This is the most ornate example of type of medieval bell tower found only in southern Italy. During times of war, the bell tower was purposed for defense. The garden contains

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

s, arches, and sculptures.

Interior

A wooden 13th century

Crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

hangs in the liturgical area. Another crucifix, made of

mother-of-pearl Nacre ( , ), also known as mother-of-pearl, is an organicinorganic composite material produced by some molluscs as an inner shell layer. It is also the material of which pearls are composed. It is strong, resilient, and iridescent. Nacre is ...

, was brought from the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

and is located to the right of the back door. The

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

in the central nave is formed from the

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

of the Peter of Capua (died 1214). Above the altar is a painting by Andrea dell'Asta of ''The Martyrdom of St. Andrew''. The boxed ceiling dates to 1702 and its artwork includes the ''Flagellation'', the ''Crucifixion of the Apostle'', and the Dell'Asta's 1710 ''Miracle of the Manna''. The

triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...

is held up by two Egyptian

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

columns. There are two additional twisted columns and two pulpits that were part of the 12th century ambo. One of the pillars boasts a hidden column as an example of the ancient Romanesque structure.

Gallery

File:Amalfi Duomo 3.JPG, The

of the cathedral File:Amalfi Cathedral Mosaic.jpg, Amalfi Cathedral

mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

File:Amalfi BW 2013-05-15 10-31-26 DxO.jpg, Bronze portal of the cathedral File:Affresco Madonna Cattedrale Amalfi.jpg, Fresco of Madonna ca. 14th century AD File:Madonna lignea con Bambino Cattedrale Amalfi.jpg, Madonna with Child ca. 15th century AD File:Giacinto Gigante Marktszene in Amalfi 1845.jpg, Painting of 1845 by Giacinto Gigante

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amalfi Cathedral Buildings and structures in Amalfi Amalfi Coast Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy Cathedrals in Campania Churches in the province of Salerno Romanesque architecture in Campania 9th-century churches in Italy