Monreale, Italy
1172-1267
Palermo, Italy
1143
Catania, Italy
1711
Syracuse, Italy
7th century AD
Taormina, Italy
3rd century BCE
Palermo, Italy
1185
Palermo, Italy
11th century
Cefalù, Italy
1131-1240
Piazza Armerina, Italy
4th century AD
Syracuse, Italy
5th century BC
Syracuse, Italy
5th century BC
Messina, Italy
1197
Syracuse, Italy
6th century BCE
Calatafimi-Segesta, Italy
420 BCE
Catania, Italy
1558
Syracuse, Italy
3rd century BCE
Catania, Italy
1239-1250
Calatafimi-Segesta, Italy
3rd century BCE
Provincia di Agrigento, Italy
500 BCE
Erice, Italy
12th century
The stone church of Gamla Uppsala, built over the pagan temple, dates from the early 12th century. Due to fire and renovations, the present church is only a remnant of the original cathedral.
Before the arrival of Christianity in Sweden, Gamla Uppsala was the seat of Swedish kings and a ceremonial site known all over northern Europe. The settlement was home to royal palaces, a royal burial ground, and a great pagan temple. The Uppsala temple, which was described in detail by Adam of Bremen in the 1070s, housed wooden statues of the Norse gods Odin, Thor and Freyr. A golden chain hung across its gables and the inside was richly decorated with gold. The temple had priests, who sacrificed to the gods according to the needs of the people.
The first Christian cathedral was probably built in the 11th century, but finished in the 12th century. The stone building may have been preceded by a wooden church and probably by the large pagan temple.