
Genoa Cathedral or Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Lawrence (, ''Cattedrale di San Lorenzo'') is a
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
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
city of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
. It is dedicated to
Saint Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence (; 31 December 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the Persecution of Christians, persecution of the Christians that the Roman Empire, Rom ...
(San Lorenzo), and is the seat of the
Archbishop of Genoa
The Archdiocese of Genoa () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Italy. Erected in the 3rd century, it was elevated to an archdiocese on 20 March 1133. The archdiocese of Genoa was, in 1986, united with ...
. The cathedral was consecrated by
Pope Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II (c. 1060/1064 – 29 January 1119), born Giovanni Caetani or Giovanni da Gaeta (also called ''Coniulo''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 January 1118 to his death in 1119. A monk of Monte C ...
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
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language
** 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
sarcophagi
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 σάρξ ' meaning "flesh", and φ� ...
, suggesting the existence of a burial ground in the site. Later a church devoted to the
Twelve Apostles
In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...
was built, which was in turn flanked and replaced by a new cathedral dedicated to
Saint Lawrence
Saint Lawrence or Laurence (; 31 December 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the Persecution of Christians, persecution of the Christians that the Roman Empire, Rom ...
, in Romanesque style. Money came from the successful enterprises of the Genoese fleets in the
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...
.
The first cathedral, now the
basilica of St. Syrus, was founded probably in the 5th or 6th century AD, devoted to
Saint Syrus,
bishop of Genoa
The Archdiocese of Genoa () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Italy. Erected in the 3rd century, it was elevated to an archdiocese on 20 March 1133. The archdiocese of Genoa was, in 1986, united with ...
. The transferring of the cathedral favored the urbanization of the zone that, with the construction of its walls in 1155, and the fusion of the three ancient city nuclei (''castrum'', ''civitas'' and ''burgus''), became the heart of the city. The piazza, in the absence of other public squares and centers of lay power, was the city's only public space for the whole of the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
. The cathedral was consecrated by
Pope Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II (c. 1060/1064 – 29 January 1119), born Giovanni Caetani or Giovanni da Gaeta (also called ''Coniulo''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 January 1118 to his death in 1119. A monk of Monte C ...
in 1118, and from 1133 had archiepiscopal rank. After the fire of 1296, provoked by fights between
Guelphs and Ghibellines
The Guelphs and Ghibellines ( , ; ) were Political faction, factions supporting the Pope (Guelphs) and the Holy Roman Emperor (Ghibellines) in the Italian city-states of Central Italy and Northern Italy during the Middle Ages. During the 12th ...
, the building was partly restored and partly rebuilt. Between 1307 and 1312 the façade was completed, the inner colonnades rebuilt with capitals and
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
Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it ...
style, is from 1522. In 1550 the Perugian architect
Galeazzo Alessi
Galeazzo Alessi (1512 – 30 December 1572) was an Italian architect from Perugia, known throughout Europe for his distinctive style based on his enthusiasm for ancient architecture. He studied drawing for civil and military architecture under th ...
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
Luca Cambiaso
Luca Cambiaso (also known as Luca Cambiasi and Luca Cangiagio (being ''Cangiaxo'' the surname in Ligurian (Romance language), Ligurian); 18 November 1527 – 6 September 1585) was an Italian Painting, painter and draughtsman and the leading arti ...
; a ''Crucifixion with Saints (St. Sebastian's Vision)'' by
Barocci
Federico Barocci (also written Barozzi) ( – 30 September 1612) was an Italian Renaissance painter and printmaker. His original name was Federico Fiori, and he was nicknamed Il Baroccio. His work was highly esteemed and influential, and foresha ...
; in front of the organ is an ''Episode from the life of St. Lawrence'' by
Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo
Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo (1584 – August 18, 1638) was an Italian painter active mainly in Genoa.
Life
Ansaldo was born in Voltri, now part of the ''comune'' of Genoa, the son of a merchant. He trained under Orazio Cambiasi and possibly collabor ...
; the ceiling fresco in the presbytery of the ''Martyrdom of St Lawrence'' was painted by
Lazzaro Tavarone
Lazzaro Tavarone (1556–1641) was an Italian painter of the late-Renaissance and Mannerist period, active mainly in his native Genoa and in Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe ...
; and an ''Assumption of the Virgin'' (1914) by
Gaetano Previati
Gaetano Previati (31 August 185221 June 1920) was an Italian Symbolist painter in the Divisionist style and art theorist.
Biography
Study and early works
Gaetano Previati was born into a moderately prosperous family and completed his first ...
. The church also contains 14th-century frescoes in the Byzantine style in the main portal. Sculptural works include a statue in the chapel of St. John by
Domenico Gagini ; a ''Virgin'' and a ''St. John the Baptist'' by
Andrea Sansovino
Andrea dal Monte Sansovino or Andrea Contucci del Monte San Savino (1529) was an Italian sculptor active during the High Renaissance. His pupils include Jacopo Sansovino (no relation).
Biography
He was the son of Domenico Contucci of Monte ...
. Other works include works by
Matteo Civitali
Matteo Civitali (1436–1501) was an Italian Renaissance sculptor and architect, painterThe only known painting attributed to Matteo, a triptych of the ''Virgin and Child with Saints Michael Archangel, John the Baptist, Biagio and Peter'', execut ...
,
Taddeo Carlone
Taddeo Carlone (died 25 March 1613) was a Swiss-Italian sculptor and architect.
His father, Giovanni, was a sculptor from Como. A native of Rovio, in Ticino, he moved with his father to Genoa. Taddeo's brother Giuseppe was a sculptor with his b ...
, and
Giacomo
Giacomo () is an Italian given name corresponding to English James (name), James. It is the Italian version of the Hebrew name Jacob (name), Jacob.
People bearing the name include:
*Giacomo Acerbo (1888–1969), Italian economi ...
and
Guglielmo Della Porta
Guglielmo della Porta (c. 1500–1577) was an Italian architect and sculptor of the late Renaissance or Mannerism, Mannerist period.
He was born to a prominent North Italian family of masons, sculptors and architects. His father Giovanni Battista ...
.
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
Sacro Catino brought by
Guglielmo Embriaco
Guglielmo Embriaco (Latin ''Guillermus Embriacus'', Genoese ''Ghigærmo de ri Embrieghi'', English ''William the Drunkard''; born c. 1040), was a Genoese merchant and military leader who came to the assistance of the Crusader States during the F ...
after the conquest of
Caesarea
Caesarea, a city name derived from the Roman title " Caesar", was the name of numerous cities and locations in the Roman Empire:
Places
In the Levant
* Caesarea Maritima, also known as "Caesarea Palaestinae", an ancient Roman city near the modern ...
and supposed to be the chalice used by Christ during the Last Supper; the Cassa Processionale del Corpus Domini ; and the Zaccaria Cross, a Byzantine reliquary that holds supposed relics of the True Cross. Dating back to the 9th and 13th centuries, it was originally part of the treasure of the
archbishops of Ephesus and was later brought back to Genoa by the
Zaccaria family
The Zaccaria family was a noble Genoa, Genoese family that had great importance in the development and consolidation of the Republic of Genoa in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, and whose only surviving branch (Damalas, Zaccaria de Dama ...
, who donated it to the cathedral.
Byzantine World
/ref>
War damage
The cathedral had a fortunate escape on February 9, 1941, when the city was being shelled as part of Operation Grog
Operation Grog was the code name name for the British naval and air bombardment of Genoa and La Spezia on 9 February 1941, by Force H of the Royal Navy, consisting of the battleship , the aircraft carrier , the battlecruiser and the ...
. Because of a crew error the British battleship fired a armour-piercing shell
Shell may refer to:
Architecture and design
* Shell (structure), a thin structure
** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses
Science Biology
* Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...
into the south-eastern corner of the nave. The relatively soft material failed to detonate the fuse
Fuse or FUSE may refer to:
Devices
* Fuse (electrical), a device used in electrical systems to protect against excessive current
** Fuse (automotive), a class of fuses for vehicles
* Fuse (hydraulic), a device used in hydraulic systems to protec ...
and the shell is still there.
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
* Domenico Bellando: cathedral organist from 1885–1912.
* List of cathedrals
This is a list of cathedrals by country, including both actual cathedrals (seats of bishops in episcopal denominations, such as Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Orthodoxy) and a few prominent churches from non-episcopal denominations commonly referr ...
* Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Genoa
The Archdiocese of Genoa () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in Italy. Erected in the 3rd century, it was elevated to an archdiocese on 20 March 1133. The archdiocese of Genoa was, in 1986, united with ...
References
External links
*
*Efthalia Rentetzi, Gli affreschi bizantini nella cattedrale di Genova. Una nuova lettura iconografica in“Arte , Documento” (2012).
{{Authority control
Cathedrals in Liguria
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 ...
12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy
Romanesque architecture in Genoa
Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy