CATTEDRALE - DUOMO SAN GERLANDO

Dedicated to San Gerlando, the city's patron saint, it rises on a rocky spur, exposing its entire right side to the via del Duomo. Built in the 11th century by the Normans, it has retained its square appearance, but was rebuilt in the 14th century and restored several times, each time adding Gothic elements to its structure. The rather sober central nave is surmounted by a wooden ceiling decorated with 16th-century paintings. The opulent liturgical choir, covered with golden garlands and angels, is even baroque. Its last restoration, which was undertaken following an earthquake, dates from 1966. Its opulent interior decoration contrasts with its exterior sobriety. There are fine carvings, a richly painted wooden coffered ceiling from the 18th century where a two-headed eagle, the emblem of Aragon, is enthroned. There are beautiful marble statues and numerous tombs, and a Mascioni organ dating from 1933 with 48 stops.

Above all, there is a mysterious "letter to the devil" written in the 17th century in indecipherable characters, kept in the cathedral archives. It is said to have been written by a nun, Isabelle Tomasi (related to Giuseppe Tomasi of Lampedusa, author of the Cheetah), on the orders of Satan himself. The cathedral also has a diocesan museum. The processions dedicated to the city's patron saint end at the foot of the cathedral where bleachers are set up to welcome the faithful.

Mudia Diocesan Museum. Travel through centuries of diocesan history by visiting the exhibition rooms of the Mudia. It is within the cathedral itself that the first works of the treasury were collected, under the impetus of the various bishops of the city. Since 2014, the collection has been on display in the Episcopal Palace, offering visitors a typological and chronological tour that unveils beautiful exhibition spaces. These include the polychrome wooden statue of San Gerlando, the cathedral's patron saint, the magnificent reliquaries from the famous Limousin goldsmith's workshops, which had a great influence throughout medieval Europe, the furniture and liturgical objects made of precious materials, and the portraits of saints from the 19th century, which reveal the physiognomical work of the artists of that century. A rich and varied collection, from the medieval period to the 19th century, revealing the osmosis between art, culture and spirituality.