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Cathedral of
San Martino in Lucca
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The
Cathedral of Lucca, also known as the Dome of San
Martino, is one of the most interesting and ancient
churches in Tuscany. Inside are preserved works of
art and religious works of great importance: the Holy
Face (Volto Santo) one of the most important relics of
the Catholic faith, is housed inside the building in an
octagonal display case; the famous funeral monument in
Ilaria del Carretto, the work of
Jacopo della Quercia;
there are also the Last Supper of Tintoretto,
paintings by Ghirlandaio, by Fra' Bartolomeo,
Filippino Lippi and several others.
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 The
foundations of the structure date back to the sixth
century, probably arose at the behest of San
Frediano himself, retired as a hermit in the nearby
mountains of Pisa, hired as bishop at the behest of
the citizens and for which the Basilica of San
Frediano was also built (see dedicated section).
The usual liveliness of the city center however, if
you can say so, the
Church of San Michele in the forum, while the
Duomo is located in a quieter part, close to the
walls of Lucca and exactly the opposite
part of the city with respect to the Basilica.
Equidistant from the Cathedral are also the
Botanical Garden of Lucca and the famous
Piazza Napoleone (each year the site of Lucca
Summer Festival).
 If
you arrive by train, the cathedral is, after the walls, the first historical
monument you will encounter. In Piazza San Martino, however, you can always
get to Piazza San Martino from a maze of streets and alleyways and
the Duomo slowly appears to be visible, as if hidden around the corner. Next
to it is Piazza Antelminelli, recognizable by the fountain located in
its center. In fact, the cathedral is at the limits of what was the Roman
Lucca. Even before that, the Church of Saints John and Reparata
was located in the area. You don't have to wait long for the construction of
a new religious building to begin, for which the political and economic
agreements immediately found ample refreshment. What is known is that at the
beginning of the eighth century the title of cathedral was transferred to
the building dedicated to San Martino and the nearby church remained only
the privilege of baptistery. In the same period, as confirmation of the new
status quo, the relics of San Regolo, African bishop and' patron
saint of the city', still preserved in the cathedral, also arrived in San
Martino.
 Around
the second half of the eleventh century, at the
behest of Pope Alexander II (born Anselmo
da Baggio and bishop of Lucca) and in the
presence of
Matilde di Canossa, the Cathedral was
completely rebuilt and transformed into five naves.
Even of this phase, however, little remains, if not
some testimony in the Museo del Duomo,
including a bust depicting the pope himself. About
three centuries later, the aisles were reduced to
three and the church became a Latin cross, the
culmination of a stylistic rebuilding that lasted
several years and for which a special confraternity
was set up, the Opera del Frontespizio, later
merged in the 12th century into the Opera di
Santa Croce. Even before, in the 12th century,
the façade was completed with the three-arched
portico and the series of loggias with multiform
columns. The figure that can be seen on the façade
with a parchment in hand dated 1204 is the architect
who followed the project, Guidetto by Como,
son of Guido and one of the Magistri cumacini (maestri
comacini), of the building craftsmen coming from
upper Lombardy.
 Even
before telling of the interior, the façade of the Cathedral of Lucca
deserves a first mention. As with that of San Michele in foro, the Duomo is
also rich in unusual characteristics: it is strongly asymmetrical, always
rather rare and strange in the churches, because raised to divine perfection
(it will be noticed how the three arches, the right one is narrower than the
other two); it is richly decorated and sculpted, you will notice scenes
depicting the 'martyrdom of San Regolo' (lunetta of the portal), the
'Deposition' (work by Nicola Pisano) in the lunette of the
portal on the left, and the Ascension of  Christ
in the lunette of the central portal. You will also notice the loggias
supported by columns and ophthytic columns, that is knotted (typical of
Lombard and Cistercian architecture, and in a narrower sense used in
Comacina art, followed by Guidetto). On the right side of the façade you can
also see the statue on the 'San Martino' horseback (in the act of
sharing his precious cloak with a poor man), the original of 1233 is kept
inside the cathedral: although the two figures are not at all similar, it
comes to think of the knight of Bamberga, present in the cathedral of this
city of Germany (see the guide of
Bamberga, for more information)
 A
little below, in the side entrance and under the narrower archway of the
façade, arouses curiosity a large inlaid labyrinth, in whose centre you can
see a figure consumed by time. These Latin words surround the drawing,
probably translated as follows: "This is the labyrinth built by Cretan
Daedalus, from whom nobody who came in could come out except Theseus helped
by the Ariadne thread". Many people refer to the labyrinth of Lucca
as the result of mystery, but in fact it should be remembered that the city
was located in the middle of the Via Francigena, along which the
labyrinths certainly do not lack (so much to be called Via dei labyrinths):
we find them very concentrated along the path that from Pavia arrives to
Lucca, passing also by
Piacenza and Pontremoli.
In Lucca the pilgrim arrived to see the Holy Face (Volto Santo)and
possibly continued towards Rome, or vice versa, towards
Santiago
de Compostela. Of course we know, the labyrinth fascinates the
most mysterious symbolists and can be the object of numerous interpretations,
all quite coherent (you will notice the similarity of the labyrinth of Lucca
with those of the Cathedral of Chartres in France and with the
labyrinth of
Alatri
in the province of Frosinone); certainly it refers in the immediacy to an
intricate and difficult path to overcome and that re-interpreted in a
Christian sense. Is this not perhaps the intention of each pilgrim in
reaching his own goal?
 Once
inside the cathedral, a sense of wide space and marked verticalism
was overwhelmed. The plan is a Latin cross and divided into three naves, the
atmosphere is Gothic and enriched by Romanesque elements. You will notice
the difference in height between the central nave and the side aisles,
another typical example of this church. On the walls of
 the
side walls there are various paintings, including Jacopo Tintoretto's
Last Supper (1518-1594). Just a little further on, housed in the
lateral sacristy, is the
Funeral monument in Ilaria del Carretto, by Jacopo della Quercia
(1408), one of the most important sculptural works in Italy's artistic
heritage.
Also in the sacristy there are other paintings of medieval art, including
Madonna and Child among the SS. Peter, Clement, Paul and Sebastianby
Domenico Ghirlandaio (1479) and in the upper lunette a dead Christ
supported by Nicodemo, attributed to the workshop of Filippino Lippi.
Also inside the Sacristy, you can admire a twelfth-century tempera on wood (Christ
crucified between Mary and John, painful, with scenes of the Passion)
and the Polyptych Madonna with Child and Saints Lamb, Regolo, Antonio
Abbot and Riccardo by Francesco d'Andrea Anguilla of the
fifteenth century (tempera on wood), of this artist see also another
polyptych in the Chapel of the SS Nicola, Biagio, Antonio Abate and
Valerian, early 15th century. On the opposite side to the sacristy,
stands out the ancient crucifix of the Holy Face (or Santa Croce) preserved
in a special "temple" of fifteenth-century construction, we have
 dedicated
a special section to it, to which the reader is referred. On the whole, you
can admire other works of historical-artistic value, including a "Madonna
with Child between Saints John the Baptist and Stephen" by Fra'
Bartolomeo, made with oil technique on board in 1509, measuring 165 x
152 cm, an Adoration of the Magi by Federico Zuccari, a San
Girolamo by Paolo Biancucci (Sacrestia) and the already referred
to
Guercino
(to admire this artist, we know it, we have to go to another church in
Lucca, the Church of Santa Maria Forisportam), and the funeral monuments
Da Noceto and Bertini by Matteo Civitali (1436-1501). The apse
basin was frescoed by Giovanni Coli and Filippo Gherardi in
1681. Finally, don't miss a visit to the The apse basin was frescoed by
Giovanni Coli and Filippo Gherardi in 1681. Finally, don't miss a
visit to the Dome Museum in Lucca.
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