
The Crypt
Point of interest 4
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Transcript
Now go down the stairs and you’ll suddenly find yourself surrounded by a maze of beautiful, monumental columns; you can count a total of 98.
From archaeological studies carried out on the walls, on the tombs and on the structure, it has been proved that the crypt was constructed at the same time as the Cathedral.
Its construction extends under the entire transept, and makes it a rare example found in the European Romanesque panorama.
Even though the crypt has maintained its fascination intact right up to date, it was subject to partial demolitions during the course of the eighteenth century with the need of reinforcing the vaults, on the northern and southern extremities, to allow for the construction of the massive altars of the above transept. The altar that you can see in the centre is a more recent construction; it was a vow made by the citizens during the II World War.
If you move towards the middle and look closer at the columns you’ll notice how the bases are all different from each other, as they’ve been made with recuperated Roman fragments – alongside the masonry of the transept and part of the church’s apses.
Continue inside, on the left hand-side and you’ll notice, on the mighty pillar, a fifteenth century fresco that represents “Saint Antonio Abate and the donors” – the protector of animals, whereas at the bottom, a pre-Christian sarcophagus is preserved that originally hosted Saint Guido’s remains and various marmoreal fragments belonging to the Cathedral’s chapels, dismembered at the end of the eighteenth century.
Point of interest 3
The interior, the chapels of the right aisle and the pulpit
Point of interest 5
The Cloister