Bologna Cathedral, consecrated in honor of the Apostle Peter, one of the main attractions of the city and the Metropolitan Church of the Archbishop of Bologna. A large part of the present building was built in the 17th century, and some parts have come down to us from 16th century.
In the early 11th century on the site of the Cathedral stood the Church and chapel, built in the architectural tradition of Ravenna. In 1141, the Church was destroyed in the terrible fire, but half a century later was restored and consecrated by Pope Lucius III. In 1396 to the Western facade was added to the portico. Later, in the late 15th century, painters from Ferrara Francesco del Koss and Ercole de Roberti worked on the creation of a cycle of frescoes in the Chapel of Garganelli. Unfortunately, these frescoes were lost as a result of subsequent restoration work, preserved only in fragments.
In 1575 on order of cardinal Gabriele Paleotti began a radical restructuring of the internal space of the Church, who by that time the seat of the Archbishop of Bologna. In its unaltered form we have only the crypt and the Cappella Maggiore. Due to large-scale repair works in 1599 collapsed Cathedral ceiling, and it was decided to rebuild the whole building. Construction began in 1605 and was completed between 1743 and 1747 for years.
The building is an old chapel with a round base has never been restored, although since the 13th century up to our days such proposals regularly appeared. Today you can see only the remains of the outer walls.
The interior of this Cathedral is designed in the Baroque style and creates a sense of Majesty and grandeur. Here you can see the works of Ludovico caracci, Alfonso Lombardi, Cesare Mauro Trebbi. While the bell tower boasts a huge bell "La Nonna" (grandmother in Italian) – its weight is 3300 lbs!
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