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THE AOSTA CATHEDRAL

The origins of Aosta’s cathedral date back to the end of the fourth century, when it was a Domus Ecclesiae of great dimensions. During the course of the eleventh century upon the request of Bishop Anselmo I (not to be confused with Anselm of Canterbury, the famous philosopher born in Aosta in 1033). The two bell towers and the crypt, accessible thanks to a stair at the end of the cathedral’s side-aisles, are a heritage of the ancient basilica.

On the inside of the entrance hall, the Renaissance wall is particularly impressive for its richness in colours and the genial manner in which the frescoes echoes the architectural and sculptural elements of the building. The frescoes above the portals represent the Annunciation Day, the Nativity (painted in the lunette) and the Jesus’ arrival at the temple. Above the roof beam, on the inside of the arch, the Apostles gaze upwards the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, painted in the gable.

On the ceilings of the entrance hall there is a magnificent fresco featuring eight flights of musician angels on the point of receiving the Virgin Mary.

Entrando nella cattedrale, il crocifisso in legno dipinto risalta contro volte a crociera realizzate per volere da François de Prez e da Giorgio di Challant. Once inside the cathedral, a painted wooden crucifix stands out against the cross-vaulted ceiling commissioned by François de Prez and Giorgio di Challant. Of great artistic value are the stained glass windows that look down upon the nave, on which are represented the Nativity, a Crucifixion and some images of various saints. These, together with the stained glass windows of the ambulatory, were made between the end of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth century.

At the cathedral’s entrance sits the chapel of the barons of Cly, which has recently been restructured. At the start of the right-hand aisle we can find the Santa Lucia altar, painted with a sixteenth century fresco depicting The Madonna with Child and various saints. Not far beyond it, access can be gained to the ambulatory in which we can visit the Museum of Aosta’s Cathedral Treasure.

In the presbytery, we can admire works of great artistic value, such as the two floor mosaics, wooden stalls made in the middle of fifteenth century, and the burial monument dedicated to Thomas of Savoy.

From the left-hand aisle it is possible to access the cloister, much celebrated for its crystalline chalk capitals. Leaving the church, we can admire the imposing church organ, built into amongst the nut-wood choir stalls. This musical instrument, seven metres high and ten metres wide, was built by the artist Carlo Vegezzi-Bossi in 1902.

Last of all, it is important to mention the cycle of medieval frescoes of the under-roof, which we may only see as part of a guided visit. These, together with the under-roof paintings of the Sant’Orso Collegiate, make up some of the best examples of Ottonian art in Europe.