, image=AlbaCN0001.jpg , caption=North side of the cathedral, with the 13th-century Lombardo-Gothic campanile , location=Via Vida, 1

Alba, Piedmont Alba ( pms, label=Piedmontese, Arba; la, Alba Pompeia) is a town and ''comune'' of Piedmont, Italy, in the Province of Cuneo. It is one of the main cities in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Vineyard Landscape of Piedmont: Langhe-Roero and M ...

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Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

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Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

, leadership= , website= , architect= , architecture_type= , architecture_style= Romanesque original, overlaid by Lombardo-Gothic and extensive 19th-century reconstructions , façade direction= , year_completed= , construction_cost= , capacity= , length= , width= , width_nave= , height_max= , dome_quantity= , dome_height_outer= , dome_height_inner= , dome_dia_outer= , dome_dia_inner= , minaret_quantity= , minaret_height= , spire_quantity= , spire_height= , materials=Red brick Alba Cathedral ( it, Cattedrale di San Lorenzo; Duomo di Alba) is a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

, Italy, dedicated to

Saint Lawrence Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. "Laurel wreath, laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the Persecution of Christians, perse ...

. It is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Alba (otherwise Alba Pompeia). It is a Romanesque building located in the Piazza del Risorgimento, better known as Piazza Duomo ("cathedral plaza"), amidst cobbled streets.

History

The earliest structure appears to have been built on the site at the end of the 5th century. A subsequent Romanesque structure was built on its ruins. The current structure, built upon the original one, dates to the first half of the 12th century, probably over holy

edifice A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory (although there's also portable buildings). Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and funct ...

s of Roman age, and is of red brick, Between the 12th and 15th centuries the cathedral was reshaped in the form of late

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It e ...

. It was restructured in the 15th century by bishop Andrea Novelli,Filippo Alizeri, Notizie dei professori del disegno, Genova 1876, 382-383. who arrived in Alba in 1484 to find the cathedral in poor condition. The most important renovation dates to 1652 to repair the damage caused by earthquakes in 1626. After the earthquake, the ceiling of the nave fell. It was restored along with the construction of two side aisles, one dedicated to San Theobald of

Provins Provins () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Known for its well-preserved medieval architecture and importance throughout the Middle Ages as an economic center and a host of annu ...

and the other to SS. Sacramento. The last major restoration was between 1867 and 1878 by the engineer

Edoardo Arborio Mella Edoardo Arborio Mella (18 November 1808 – 8 January 1884) was an Italian architect, restorer and scholar. Well known at the time for his ‘stylish’ restorations of medieval buildings in Piedmont,“ ��notissimo all’epoca per i suoi restauri ...

who modified the exterior of the cathedral as well as the interior décor. This reconstruction included roofs, aisle vaults, the rebuilding of the apse, the rehabilitation of the facade, opening side windows and the replacement of the pavement. The current appearance dates to the controversial restoration of the 19th century, of which the three portals and the

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

are from the original edifice.

Recent adaptations

Restoration work in 2007, including the heating infrastructure, was carried out with financial backing from Bank Foundation of

Cassa di Risparmio di Cuneo Cassa di Risparmio di Cuneo S.p.A. was an Italian savings bank based in Cuneo, Piedmont. The organization ceased to operate as a bank but as a non-profit organization as ''Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Cuneo''. History Cassa di Risparmio di Cune ...

. An ancient baptismal font was found during archaeological excavation in the aisle in front of the Blessed Sacrament chapel. Approximately 100 graves, primarily of children, dating from the 16th and 18th centuries were also found. The finding was not unusual as it was once customary to reuse the space of an ancient baptistery redesigned as a burial place. The recent renovation gave the Diocese the opportunity to consider the next restoration which will be a 'liturgical adaptation' to the cathedral. In 2008, an Evaluation Committee was formed, consisting of the vicar, the parish priest, the Cultural Property Office of the Diocese, the Director of the National Office of Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage, as well as expert architects and superintendents. It selected a design that takes into account of two of the cathedral's architectural aspects, the ancient chorus and the special decoration of with bands on the columns that stress the development of building upward. The cost of the work will be supported by the Diocese.

Architecture and fittings

The building has a nave and two aisles, on the Latin cross plan. The first chapel on the right is that of the Holy Cross. Its altar was designed in Mella-style with neo-Gothic walls on the left side. The painting of ''St Joseph'' is from the 18th century. Paintings of ''Madonna and Child'' and ''St Philip'' date from the same century, and are attributed to Pietro Paolo Operti. The altar of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart is in Gothic style and holds a statue of the same name. The walls display paintings by Agostino Cottolengo include one of the Abbot San Palemon (1827), and the other depicting Pope Eugene (1840). The church organ was built by Fratelli Lingiardi of Pavia in 1876. The current belfry, from the 12th century, includes entirely the original bell tower. The old bell tower, not particularly high, contains at least five overlapping buttresses to form a powerful base. It is visible by ascending through a cavity that leads to the belfry and was built as a public works project. It is symbolic of the union between Alba's clergy and Alba's society. Reconstruction of the ancient tower included the interior staircase. Alba-duomo-navata maggiore

The church is well known for its wood-carved

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

stalls built in 1512 by

Bernardino Fossati Bernardino is a name of Italian, Hispanic, or Portuguese origin, which can refer to: Given name * Bernardino Baldi (1533–1617), Italian mathematician and writer *Bernardino Bertolotti (born 1547), Italian composer and instrumentalist *Bernard ...

. The stalls consist of thirty-five seats in two semicircle rows. The center one is the Episcopal stall. An overhead canopy is flanked by 34 children's stalls, seventeen on each side. The canopies and stalls are decoratively framed in an architectural style typical of the area. This includes a traditional iconographic motif of Renaissance

marquetry Marquetry (also spelled as marqueterie; from the French ''marqueter'', to variegate) is the art and craft of applying pieces of veneer to a structure to form decorative patterns, designs or pictures. The technique may be applied to case furn ...

. The seats are separated from each other by arm rests with plant motifs. The outer paneling consists of inlaid wood scenes, each enclosed in a frame with geometric motifs. The images alternate in their subject matter. They depict differing views of development of the city of Alba, actually inventing architectural features. The semicircle of sculptural depictions, thirty-five in all, are of the Renaissance tradition. The builder used different wood types for the inlay in order to create color nuances. The sculptured subjects include bound books, cups filled with fruit and inverted cups, landscapes, musical instruments, objects of worship, symbols of the Passion, and villages perched on hilltops. A small altar, built in 1872, is dedicated to

Saint Bavo Saint Bavo of Ghent (also known as Bavon, Allowin, Bavonius, Baaf; AD 622–659) is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint. He was the son of Pepin of Landen and the brother of saints Begga and Gertrude of Nivelles. Life Bavo was born n ...

. It contains an oil painting on canvas, a representation of San Bovo, by the artist

Luigi Morgari Luigi Morgari (1 January(?) 1857 in Turin – 1 January(?) 1935 in Turin) was an Italian painter, primarily of frescoes on religious themes. Biography He was born to a family of artists. His first studies were with his father Paolo Emilio ...

and was painted for the cathedral. Placed over a sacred table that was built to a design of

, the painting is framed by stucco decorations, pale blue in color, with gold decorations. The painting portrays San Bovo kneeling in admiration of the cross which pierces the sky. The saint is wearing a red cloak, and is dressed as a soldier in boots and a helmet. He holds a waving white flag; a shield lies at his feet. A tower is visible in the distance. A baptistery chapel designed by the architect

Ugo Della Piana Ugo is the Italian form of Hugh, a widely used name of Germanic origin. Its diminutive form is Ugolino. It is also a Nigerian Igbo first name. It may refer to: People * Vgo (stonemason), medieval stonemason * Ugo Bassi, a Roman Catholic pries ...

in 1991 contains the painting ''Baptism of Jesus''.

References

Bibliography

*Bartoletti, Massimo; Cabrini, Laura Damiani, ''I Carlone di Rovio'', Fidia edizioni d'arte, Lugano 1997, 67. *Colombo, Silvia A.; Coppa, Simonetta, ''I Carloni di Scaria'', Fidia edizioni d'arte, Lugano 1997, 33. * Gabrielli, Noemi, ''Sculture di Antonio Carlone ad Alba'', in Edorado Arslan (a cura di), ''Arte e artisti dei laghi lombardi'', I, Tipografia Editrice Antonio Noseda, Como 1959, 167-172, tavola XXXII, figure 74-75, 76-77. {{DEFAULTSORT:Alba Cathedral 12th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Alba, Piedmont Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy Cathedrals in Piedmont Churches in the province of Cuneo Romanesque architecture in Piedmont