Urbania Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Urbania; Concattedrale di San Cristoforo martire) is a Neoclassical Roman Catholic cathedral, dedicated to

Saint Christopher Saint Christopher ( el, Ἅγιος Χριστόφορος, ''Ágios Christóphoros'') is veneration, venerated by several Christianity, Christian denominations as a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman Empire, Roman emperor Deciu ...

, in Urbania, in the Province of Pesaro and Urbino in the region of

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

, Italy. It was the seat of the Bishops of Urbania e Sant'Angelo in Vado from the creation of the diocese in 1636. Since 1986 it has been a co-cathedral in the

Archdiocese of Urbino-Urbania-Sant'Angelo in Vado In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

History

The present church was built on the site of a prior Paleochristian structure, the 9th-century church of San Cristoforo. Only the Romanesque bell tower and other traces remain. It was restructured by Cardinal Bessarion, abbot of Casteldurante, who in 1472 brought to it the

reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', by the French term ''châsse'', and historically including ''wikt:phylactery, phylacteries'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary may be called a ''fereter'', and a chapel in which it i ...

of the shoulder bone of Saint Christopher in an urn by

Pollaiolo Pollaiolo or Pollaiuolo is the name of several people, including: * Antonio del Pollaiuolo (1429/1433–1498), Italian Renaissance artist * Piero del Pollaiuolo (1443–1496), Italian Renaissance artist, brother of Antonio * Simone del Pollaiolo ...

. The church was rebuilt in the mid-1700s by the architect Giuseppe Tosi. The façade (1870) is by

Giuseppe Tacchi Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph, from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף. It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it. The feminine form of the name is Gius ...

and the new bell tower (1958) by the engineer Stefanucci. The interior has a crucifix (1320) by

Pietro da Rimini Pietro da Rimini (active 1315-1335) was an early 14th-century Italian painter. Biography Pietro was born in Rimini and was a contemporary of the painters Giovanni and Giuliano da Rimini. He worked mainly in member and the Marche. Influenced by ...

. On the left wall of the apse is a 16th-century canvas of the ''Pentecost'' by the Mannerist painter

Giustino Episcopi Giustino may refer to: Name *The Italian variation of Justin (name) People *Giovanni Giustino Ciampini (1633 – 1698), an ecclesiastical archaeologist *Giustino de Jacobis (1800 – 1860), an Italian Roman Catholic bishop *Giustino Durano (1923 ...

. In the church there are also works by

Giorgio Picchi Giorgio Picchi il Giovane (active 1586-1599) was an Italian painter active in Rome, Cremona, Rimini, Urbino, and Urbania. He was either a pupil or follower of Federico Barocci. Born in Castel Durante, present-day Urbania, he trained with his fath ...

(''Saint Ubaldo'' and the ''Birth of John the Baptist'', of the late 16th century) and other Baroque artists. The chapel of San Cristoforo houses the statue of its patron saint (1768).Urbania Column
description of churches.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Urbania Cathedral Roman Catholic churches in Urbania Roman Catholic cathedrals in Italy Cathedrals in the Marche Neoclassical architecture in le Marche Buildings and structures in Urbania 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Neoclassical church buildings in Italy