There are two Duomos in the Palermo area that are built in the 12th century... commissioned by King Roger II ... a herring eating Norman who is supposed to be ignorant of all things artistic... but somehow brought together a team of artisans who blended aspects of Norman and Arabian art with exquisite displays of mosaics and coloured marble. The time period precedes the mini-iceage... European and the Ottoman empires were prosperous... trade flowed more freely... less GDP was allocated to defence and more to the arts.
The church in Palermo (Palatine Chapel) was probably built first... it is much smaller... exquisite... better maintained because it is relatively small... with less use of detailed mosaics and more use of colour variations in marble...the pinks, salmons, reds... to highlight picture borders, floors and cornices. Imagine the patience and skills required to get multiple cuts of the same colour variations to build the larger mosaic pieces in a picture frame. Columns of marble showed careful selection of colour variation that added to the richness of the interior. The frescoes on the walls and ceilings were vivid in colour... some special maintenance treatment must have been applied. The altar used pure white marble... intricately carved... that seemed inconsistent with the luxuriant use of colour elsewhere in the church. Invariably, when passing the donation box after viewing a cathedral, I walk straight past... on the basis that the church has ripped off my ancestors sufficiently to pay for the building of cathedrals... and instead give some coins to the gypsy ladies begging at the door. When exiting this church... I still could not bring myself to make a donation to the Church... but asked Joye to put a little something into the box... the visual splendour inside was inspiring!
The Duomo at Monreale reflected a later period... again built by the Norman (self-annointed) king... was built to be impressive... both in scale and decoration. Pictures painted with tiny ceramic mosaics covering the walls and ceiling. No doubt, each scene carried its own specially crafted message to the faithful. When you try to appreciate the skills and patience needed to complete this work of art your mind grinds to a halt. The ceramic pieces still retained their vibrant colours... this church makes St Peter's Basilica look drab in comparison. Another feature is the height and strength of the marble columns. The polish on the marble made the columns appear monolithic... to get one marble in one piece so long and so tall... must have taken considerable searching and considerable skill in the cutting. Alongside the Duomo are the Cloisters... in original condition... again reflecting the artistic genius of the architects and builders. Subtle use of mosaics to decorate columns along the cloister's walkways was a celebration of the arts... and would not pass the cost/benefit analysis of modern building disciplines.
If you are touring Italy... and like a good church... forget about St Peter's Basilica and the hours of queuing... and the extortionate entry prices. Do yourself a treat and come to Palermo and visit two of the best churches ever built... for free... but you may weaken (like me) and make a contribution to the donation box.
No comments:
Post a Comment