Duomo

The beauty of the Duomo dominates the shining limestone and marble square Piazza Duomo.  Its structure treasures one of the most important and famous Doric monument in all Sicily: the Temple of Athena. The Greek Temple is dated to 480 b.C., wanted by the tyrant Gelone according to the victory against Cartago in the battle of Himera. Currently are clearly visible almost all columns and some parts of the interior chamber. Then in the 6^th century the Byzantines converted the temple into a church: included the exterior colonnade in the outer walls of the church and opened eight arches on each side of the interior chamber to create a building with three naves, dedicated to Virgin Mary. In the 7^th century the bishop Zosimo moved the cathedral’s seat to the Duomo (which previously was in San Giovanni’s church).

During the 9^th century under Arabs domination the Cathedral was probably used as a Mosque, even though in the 12^th century with the Normans it went back to be a church. In Norman times was built a new facade and were raised the walls of the nave to open up windows. Then in the 15^th century was remade the floor in polychrome marble, in the middle is found the coat of arms of the ancient Siracusa.

The terrible earthquake in 1693 destroyed the Norman facade and the bell tower, never rebuilt. But it was an opportunity to reconstruct in the 18^th century the current Baroque facade, and to decorate internally the church.

It is an essential place to visit, an architectural treasure inside the core of Ortigia with 2400 years of history.