DUOMO

The history of the cathedral is punctuated by numerous destructions due to wars, fires and earthquakes, which inevitably led to its multiple reconstructions. And it was around all these events that a deeply religious community took root that distinguished the Cathedral as the oldest and most venerable church in Reggio! A special "label" that can be explained by the visit of St. Paul, but also by its scale and artistic splendour, and for the multitude of the faithful who gather there. An extraordinary fact that places it at the head of all the churches in Calabria. Dedicated to Our Lady of the Assumption, the cathedral was destroyed by the earthquake of 1908 and rebuilt on a project by Carmelo Angioini. Consecrated in 1928, it has a monumental white facade in an eclectic style that fantastically blends Romanesque and Gothic architecture. The three-nave interior is also freely inspired by Gothic models. It houses some works of art from the various churches of the city that have now been destroyed. There are paintings by the Neapolitan Solimena and the Sicilian painter Maroli, dating back to the 17th century, as well as the 17th century tombs of the city's bishops. In the left transept, the baroque chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento, spared from the ravages of time, is sumptuously decorated with polychrome marbles. In the right nave, a fragment of a column that the legend links to the passage from St. Paul to Reggio.