Overview
Built on a hill that the Nuorese call "sa Tanchitta", Santa Maria della Neve is the main religious building in the city and a spiritual reference point for the entire province of Nuoro.
Following the elevation of Nuoro to a diocesan see in the nineteenth century, the new cathedral was erected on the site of the old church of Santa Maria Maggiore to accommodate the religious ceremonies required by its new role. However, numerous events slowed down the work, which was brought to completion almost twenty years later.
The grandiose building dominates a large square. The façade, distinguished by four monumental granite columns surmounted by Ionic capitals supporting a tympanum, is flanked by two twin bell towers.
The building fully reflects the Palladian style so dear to its designer, the friar from Sassari Antonio Cano, who died tragically during the construction work.
The interior is covered by a majestic barrel vault with large windows, through which light enters and is diffused, creating chiaroscuro effects. Technically with a single nave, the cathedral seems to consist of three naves due to the communicating arches between the side chapels.
Over the course of an entire week, from late July to early August, on theoccasion of religious celebrations that culminate on 5 August, with the popular feast day of Santa Maria della Neve, the cathedral becomes the focus for the celebrations of all the parishes and confraternities of the city and of about ten other towns in the province.
Piazza Santa Maria della Neve, 08100 Nuoro NU, Italia
