BASILICA DI SAN MICHELE MAGGIORE
Place where the Lombard kings, the emperors Charlemagne, Henry II and Frederick Barbarossa were crowned.
In the centre of the city, a few steps from the Ponte Coperto, this basilica is the place where the kings of the Lombards, the emperors Charlemagne, Henry II and Frederick Barbarossa were crowned. Its foundation dates back to Roman times, but its reconstruction in the 12th century made it a masterpiece of Lombard Romanesque art, among the best preserved in Italy. The importance of the building explains its facade in blonde sandstone, and not in red brick as was then the norm. The harmonious composition of the building, based on horizontal and vertical lines, is admired, as is the elegance of the sculpted decoration around the portals. On the right side, a beautiful sculpted lintel shows Christ handing over a volumen to Saint Paul and the keys of the Church to Saint Peter.
Inside, interesting architectural elements catch the eye, among them the cupola on trunks, the raised choir and the triforium (tribune reserved for women) underlined by friezes, as well as beautiful sculpted capitals. The apse is decorated with a beautiful 15th century fresco(Coronation of the Virgin) while the left arm of the transept preserves a jewel of religious goldsmithery, the precious Crucifix of Theodotus, entirely covered with silver strips (10th century). One should not leave without admiring the crypt, which is punctuated by columns with sculpted capitals whose shafts and stones differ from one another. The great iconographic variety of the decorations is astonishing.
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