Overview
Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015, the Cathedral of Cefalù, better known as the Basilica Cattedrale della Trasfigurazione ("Basilica Cathedral of the Transfiguration"), was built in 1131 at the behest of Roger II of Hauteville. It still stands as a precious testimony to Byzantine, Arab and Norman culture.The two towers on the façade lend an air of austerity, and the entrance portal dating back to the end of the 15th century is splendid, embellished with white marble carvings and protected by a portico. On the right side of the building are battlements and side apses with decorative motifs of interlaced arches, common in the island architecture of the time. In the apsidal basin stands a huge 12th-century mosaic depicting Christ Pantocrator. At the bottom of the mosaics is the Virgin with the archangels, while on the side walls of the apse is a long row of angels, patriarchs and prophets. Special tour itineraries (for a fee) allow visitors to climb the towers and access the inner corridor, overlooking the mosaic of Christ.
