Duomo di Santa Maria Assunta, Spoleto
View of Spoleto's Duomo from above. Photo
nina volare.
The Piazza del Duomo. Photo
Massimo Mantellini.
Upper façade of Santa Maria Assunta.
The baroqued interior, looking toward the apse.
Dormition of the Virgin fresco by Filippo Lippi. Public domain.
Self-portrait of Filippo Lippi in the Dormition of the Virgin fresco.
Coronation of the Virgin apse fresco by Filippo Lippi.
Fresco of the Annunciation by Philippo Lippi, on the left side of the apse.
Romanesque mosaic pavement. Photo
Zyance.The Duomo of Spoleto, dating from the 12th century, features a lovely Romanesque façade and a magnificent fresco cycle by Fra Filippo Lippi. Its official name is Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta (Cathedral of the Assumption of St. Mary).
History
The cathedral was built to replace a church razed by Frederick Barbarossa in 1155, when the emperor destroyed Spoleto for refusing to pay him tribute.
The Duomo's interior was fully baroqued in the 17th century for Pope Urban VII, who's commemorated with a Gian Lorenzo Bernini bust high above the central door inside. Only the pavement and frescoes survived this renovation.
The Life of the Virgin fresco cycle in the apse was begun by Fra Filippo Lippi in 1467. The work was almost finished when the master died suddenly in 1469; his assistants finished it up a few months later on his behalf.
The Duomo contains the tomb of Filippo, but his remains have been lost. The tomb was designed by his son, Filippino, at the request of Lorenzo de' Medici. Lorenzo was unable to convince the Spoleteans to give Filippo's body to Florence to be honored there.
Though technically a monk, Filippo was quite the womanizer, and he was rumored to have been poisoned by the enraged family of a local girl whose honor he had compromised. Filippo's bones mysteriously disappeared a few centuries later – some say they were removed and scattered by her still-indignant descendants.
What to See
Spoleto's Duomo is at the bottom of a monumental staircase on the Piazza del Duomo, backed by a forested green hill. It makes a fitting stage for the Spoleto Festival finale and, on a more daily basis, a soccer field for local children.
A 3rd-century AD Roman sarcophagus serves as a public fountain at the base of the stairs, and the small octagonal-roofed Church of Santa Maria della Manna d'Oro is to the left. (Sometimes the Duomo sacristan will unlock it on request.)
The Duomo's unique façade, featuring a 1207 mosaic by Solsternus surrounded by eight rose windows, dominates the square. The mosaic depicts Christ between the Virgin Mary and St. Giovanni, placed between the symbols of the four Evangelists.
The bell tower was pieced together using stone looted from Roman temples, and the porch is a 1492 addition.
Inside, the first chapel on the right has a fresco (1497) of the Madonna and Child by Pinturicchio lit by a light box, which also illuminates the early-16th-century frescoes adorning the chapel next door. The right transept is home to a Madonna and Child with Saints (1599) by Baroque master Annibale Carracci as well as the empty tomb of Filippo Lippi, designed by his son.
Straight ahead, Filippo Lippi's Life of the Virgin fresco cycle covers the apse. The first scene on the left, the Annunciation, is believed to be almost entirely from the master's hand, as is the magnificently colored Coronation of the Virgin in the curving space above. Mary is shown being crowned by God himself, with a rainbow of saints and Old Testament figures looking on.
The central panel, the Death of the Virgin, is also mainly by Lippi and contains several personal portraits. Filippo is the man in the black hat, turned toward the viewer and wearing the white monk's habit that seemed so inappropriate throughout his philandering life. Portraits of his assistants are behind him and his 11-year-old son Filippino Lippi, who was already becoming a painting prodigy, is in front as a candle-holding angel. The final Nativity scene was completed by Filippo's assistants after his death.
On the way out of the Duomo is the entrance to the Cappella delle Reliquie (Reliquary Chapel) on the left aisle, restored in 1993. Relics here include 16th-century intarsia wood cupboards, a 14th-century painted wooden Madonna and Child, and a letter written and signed by St. Francis. (Assisi has the only other bona fide signature of the saint.)
The last altar before the exit has a colorful painted crucifix, signed in 1187 by Alberto Sotio.
Quick Facts
| Names: | Spoleto Duomo; Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta; Cathedral of the Assumption of St. Mary; Spoleto Cathedral |
| Type of site: | Cathedral |
| Faith: | Roman Catholic |
| Date: | c.1160 |
| Architecture: | Romanesque with Baroque interior |
| Status: | Active |
| Location: | Piazza del Duomo, Spoleto, Umbria, Italy |
| Phone: | 0743-44-307 |
| Hours: | Daily 8am to 12:30pm and 3 to 5:30pm (until 7pm Mar-Oct) |
| Cost: | Free |
Article Sources
- Personal visits (April 18-19, 2008).
- Frommer's Florence, Tuscany & Umbria, 4th Edition
More Information
- Santa Maria Assunta (Duomo) – Edizioni Art Studio
- Spoleto Cattedrale – Bellatrovata
Location Map
Below is a location map and aerial view of the Duomo of Spoleto. Using the buttons on the left, zoom in for a closer look or zoom out to get your bearings. Click and drag the map to move around. For a larger view, see our Spoleto Map or get our free Google Earth download.
