Archive for 'Churches & Religious Buildings'

The Cathedral of St. Ambrose is a building in Lombardy with roots going as far back as the tenth century, though the present structure dates to the sixteenth.

It is the seat of the Bishop of Vigevano and the current building was commissioned by Duke Francesco II Sforza in 1530.

Dedicated to St. Ambrose, it was designed by Antonio da Lonate and thought it was begun shortly afterwards, work was not completed until 1612.

With beautiful painted interiors, a newer Baroque façade and a famous treasury and museum inside, it is a typical Italian cathedral in many ways.

Located on the upscale Via Veneto in Rome, Santa Maria della Concezione is dedicated to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. It was built in 1626 by Cardinal Antonio Barberini, the younger brother of Pope Urban VIII, who was a Capuchin friar. Antonio Casoni and another Capuchin Friar, Michele da Bergamo, were the architects and they built a beautiful but simple church. The real interest in this site, however, is what lies below. When the Capuchins moved from their location at the Quirinal to the Via Veneto site, they brought the bones of around 4000 friars and placed them in a cemetery under the church, arranged in patterns on the walls and ceilings. The result is eerie and very unusual. Find a holiday rental in Rome and see it yourself.

Palermo Cathedral was founded on the site of a Muslim mosque, which in turn had replaced an Early Christian basilica in 1184 by the Archbishop of Palermo. His aim was to create something more astounding than the cathedral at Monreale nearby and so a competition broke out between the two cathedrals which became known as the “Battle of the Two Cathedrals”. It is still debatable as to who the winner was but the cathedral at Palermo is stunning in its own right. A fantastic example of the Arab-Norman architecture that is awaiting news on UNESCO status and which is one of the defining characteristics of the city, it is a must-see for any with a love of Western churches, Islamic architecture and Byzantine mosaics as it sees all three combined.

Lake Reschen, in South Tyrol, Italy is an artificial lake located near the Reschen Pass, right by the border with Austria. Work was begun in 1940 but WWII and local protestations meant that it was not completed until 1950. The lake unifies two natural lakes, Reschensee and Mittersee, and submerged several villages, including Graun and Reschen. The thing that makes this site so remarkable, however, is the 14th century church tower which can still be seen, poking out of the water. At once eerie and beautiful, it is a remarkable thing to behold and surrounded by some of the world's most astounding scenery.

The Temple of Valadier doesn't look real. It looks, instead, like something from a fantasy novel. Perched just inside the Frassassi mountain caves in Genga, Le Marche with views across an amazing landscape, it seems like a mythical temple or the home of some magical creature.

In reality, it is a neoclassical church which was built in 1828 for Pope Leone XII, who was from the area. The church is set inside the equally fantastical Frassassi cave system. With its crags, stalagmites and stalactites, it has a theatrical and breath-taking appearance.

These caves, too, can be visited and explored. If you are in search of beauty and magnificence that seems utterly other-worldly, find a holiday rental in Le Marche and spend a day exploring this special place.