Overview

The Cathedral of Reggio Emilia dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta has a very long and complex history, with a great stratification of styles.

Built on an ancient Roman construction around 857, it has undergone several transformations over the centuries. Its medieval layout was enriched in the 13th century by a brick façade decorated with frescoes, remains of which are preserved in the Diocesan Museum.

Towards the end of the 15th century, the style of the cathedral was adapted to the architectural canons of the time and stone cladding with columns, niches and statues of saints was begun.

In the tower on the façade, the statue of the Madonna and Child with the Fiordibelli spouses, the benefactors, is an absolutemasterpiece of goldsmith\'s art. Among the many works of art that enrich its interior, we find the Assumption of the Virgin Mary Saint Peter in the Chair and Saint Jerome (1626) by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri known as Guercino.

Witness to the medieval phase, the crypt, covered by cross vaults supported by 42 columns, contains the altar with the ark and bodies of the Holy Martyrs Chrysanthus and Daria.

A precious chapel, frescoed by Marcantonio Franceschini in 1701 and by Luigi Quaini, holds the important Treasure of the basilica while, in the sacristy, several paintings are kept, including the Assumption of the Virgin by Tommaso Laureti and Ludovico Carracci.