Lucera Cathedral
| Basic data | |
|---|---|
| Patronage : | St. Mary |
| Consecration day : | |
| Address: | Piazza del Duomo Lucera |
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Santa Maria Assunta is the cathedral of the diocese Lucera-Troia in the Apulian town of Lucera and in its present form mostly dates from the 14th century. It has the rank of a minor basilica and is one of the very rare buildings in Apulia in which the Gothic style of the French rulers of Apulia at the time is almost unchanged.
Location and naming
The church is located in the historic city center of Lucera on the small Piazza del Duomo named after it . It takes its name from a gilded statue of the Virgin Mary from the late 14th century, carved from dark wood. The figure is also nicknamed Madonna della vittoria , because it is supposed to commemorate the victory of the Anjou family over the Hohenstaufen in southern Italy.
Development and construction history
Today's church stands on the site of an older church that was converted into a mosque under Emperor Friedrich II . This became necessary because the Saracens he settled in the neighboring Lucera Fort from Sicily adhered to the Islamic faith. Friedrich also formed his bodyguard from the Saracens.
After the murder or enslavement of the Saracens in 1300 under Charles II of Anjou , the mosque was also destroyed. Charles II gave the order to build today's church on this site, its builder was probably Pierre d'Agincourt . Construction was completed by 1317.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the interior of the church was redesigned in the Baroque style; these changes were partially removed in the 19th century. Pope Gregory XVI elevated the church to the rank of minor basilica in 1834 .
facade
The asymmetrical facade is divided into three parts. The left and middle part of the facade dates back to the 14th century. It is kept very simple, above the left side portal only a pointed arch window breaks through the wall surface, a large arched window is inserted in the center of the upper part of the middle facade, a rosette - rather untypical for large Apulian sacred buildings - was not inserted. The right part of the facade is formed by a tower that appears Romanesque , although it was built later , especially because of the mono- and biforias . The octagonal lantern on top dates from the 16th century. Even if the facade is kept rather simple overall, the figurative representations on the portals are finely crafted.
Interior and outfit
The interior of the church is an oriented on the French cathedral Gothic basilica , it has therefore a Latin cross as a floor plan of three naves with a raised central nave.
The pointed arch arcades of the wide central nave and the pillars on which they rest give a clear indication of the hand of the French builders. The half-columns in front of the pillars are still of ancient origin. The high walls of the nave are only broken through by very small lancet windows.
The transept is of considerable depth, and lancet windows are also used in the choir. Adjacent to this is the church with three apses in the eastern part. The figure of the patroness is on the altar of the left arm of the transept.
Particularly noteworthy are the frescoes in the left apse from the 15th century and the furnishings in the right apse. It contains a crucifix from the Rhineland from the 14th century, created around 1340, and a grave monument of a French knight, also from the 14th century.
The pulpit dates from 1560.
The stone table, which today forms the main altar, is of art and general historical interest. The top, as well as the octagonal pillars that support it and are covered by various capitals, were originally a table in Castel Fiorentino , where Emperor Friedrich II died in 1250.
literature
- Valentino Pace: Art monuments in southern Italy - Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria ; Knowledge Buchges .; Darmstadt 1994, ISBN 3-534-08443-8
- Ekkehart Rotter: Apulia . Trips to Byzantine grotto churches, Norman cathedrals, Hohenstaufen forts and baroque buildings in Lecce. (= DuMont art travel guide ). 6th edition. Dumont Reise Verlag, Ostfildern 2012, ISBN 3-7701-4314-0 .
- Ludwig Tavernier: Apulia ; Artemis Publishing House; Munich 1987, ISBN 3-7608-0792-5
- Carl Arnold Willemsen : Apulia - cathedrals and forts ; 2nd ed.; DuMont Schauberg; Cologne 1973, ISBN 3-7701-0581-8
- Wolfgang Braunfels : Small Italian Art History . DuMont Buchverlag, Cologne 1984, ISBN 3-7701-1509-0 .
- Eberhard Horst: Friedrich II. - The Staufer - Emperor - General - Poet ; Wilhelm Heyne Publishing House; Munich 1975, ISBN 3-453-55043-9 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Willemsen: Apulia , p. 41.
- ↑ Rotter: Apulia , p. 96.
- ↑ Rotter: Apulia , p. 95.
- ↑ Rotter: Apulia , p. 95
- ↑ Rotter, Apulien , p. 96.
Coordinates: 41 ° 30 ′ 28.9 ″ N , 15 ° 20 ′ 6 ″ E