Monopoli Cathedral the Basilica of the Madonna della Madia Dec062021 02

Monopoli Cathedral, otherwise the Basilica of the Madonna della Madia or Santa Maria della Madia ( it, Duomo di Monopoli; Basilica Concattedrale di Maria Santissima della Madia) is a

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 ...

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 ...

in the town of

Monopoli Monopoli (; Monopolitano: ) is a town and municipality in Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Bari and region of Apulia. The town is roughly in area and lies on the Adriatic Sea about southeast of Bari. It has a population of 49,246 ...

, in the province of Bari, region of

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

, Italy. It is dedicated to the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

under the title of the Madonna della Madia, after an icon kept here. Formerly the episcopal seat of the

Diocese of Monopoli The Italian Catholic diocese of Monopoli, in the province of Bari, existed from the eleventh century to 1986. In that year it was united into the diocese of Conversano-Monopoli. History The episcopal see at Monopoli was created in 1062, and its ...

, it has been since 1986 a co-cathedral in the

Diocese of Conversano-Monopoli The Italian Roman Catholic diocese of Conversano-Monopoli ( la, Dioecesis Conversanensis-Monopolitana), in Apulia, has existed since 1986, when the diocese of Monopoli was united with the historic diocese of Conversano. The diocese is a suffragan ...

. The cathedral was granted the status of a

minor basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

in 1921.

History

The cathedral was erected near the site of a Roman temple and burial site. Work began on it in 1107, but was supposedly halted for the lack of roof beams. A miracle occurred in 1117 when a raft carrying an icon of the Madonna drifted into the harbour. The raft beams were used to construct the roof. The Romanesque structure was not complete until 1442, when it was consecrated. Two of the three bell-towers were damaged during the siege of the

Marquis Del Vasto Alfonso d'Avalos d'Aquino, 6th Marquis of Pescara, 2nd Marquis of Vasto (1502 – 31 March 1546), was an Italian condottiero of Aragonese origins, renowned for his service in favor of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain. Biography He ...

in 1528. The remaining tower collapsed in 1686, killing forty townspeople. By 1693, a new campanile had been erected. In 1738, an endowment by Bishop Giulio Sacchi called for a refurbishment. The old church was razed, and a new church begun in 1742. Work was completed in

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

style in 1772. In 1921, the cathedral was declared a minor basilica. In 1986, the dioceses of Monopoli and Conversano were joined, making this a co-cathedral. On 1770, the icon of Our Lady of Madia was Crowned with a decree from

Pope Clement XIII Pope Clement XIII ( la, Clemens XIII; it, Clemente XIII; 7 March 1693 – 2 February 1769), born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. ...

The Chapel of Our Lady of Madia has elaborate polychrome decoration on the altar. The chapel contains two large canvases by

Pietro Bardellino Pietro Bardellino (1728–1806) was an Italian painter. He lived his life aiming to be the ‘perfect man’. Biography Bardellino was born in Naples, and was initially trained by Francesco de Mura. In 1773 he became director of the ''Accademia Na ...

, and there are 6 small 18th-century paintings depicting the

Life of the Virgin The Life of the Virgin, showing narrative scenes from the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a common subject for pictorial cycles in Christian art, often complementing, or forming part of, a cycle on the Life of Christ. In both cases the nu ...

Michele del Pezzo Michele (), is an Italian male given name, akin to the English male name Michael. Michele (pronounced ), is also an English female given name that is derived from the French Michèle. It is a variant spelling of the more common (and identically ...

. A series of four paintings (1732) in the Chapel of the Martyrs by Michelangelo Signorile recounts the ''Miracle of the Raft''.Website of the cathedral
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References

{{Coord, 40.9510, N, 17.3033, E, source:wikidata, display=title Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy Cathedrals in Apulia Churches in the metropolitan city of Bari 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Roman Catholic churches completed in 1772 Neoclassical church buildings in Italy