Gallipoli Cathedral, Gallipoli, Italy

The Gallipoli Cathedral, formally the Co-Cathedral Basilica of Saint Agatha the Virgin, was built in 1629-1696. The church is a minor basilica and the co-cathedral of the Diocese of Nardò-Gallipoli.

The Baroque facade of the cathedral was designed by Giuseppe Zimbalo, Francesco Bischetini, and Scipione Lachibari. It is constructed out of carparo stone, sourced from Southern Italy. The church was built with a cruciform floorpan in the shape of a Latin cross.

The interior of the church is a mixture of the Byzantine and Renaissance styles. The nave is flanked by columns of grey marble, which support an arcade. The interior is ornamented by paintings by Giovanni Andrea Coppola, a painter native to Gallipoli. Nicolò Malinconico painted the frescoes on the walls and in the cupola, which depicts the martyrdom of Saint Agatha.

The cathedral's altar is made of a reused Ancient Roman marble stele. There is an Ancient Greek inscription on the stele.

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User Reviews

Marina G (13 months ago)
Unmissable.

Carita McCullagh (2 years ago)
This was my favourite church in all of Apulia and certainly the best thing in Gallipoli. An added bonus was the wedding taking place which was colourful and very interesting

Dejan Braki (2 years ago)
The Sant'Agata Basilica is located in the heart of Gallipoli old town which is on a small island. It is the largest building there packed in tiny streets around, so it's difficult to capture the whole beautiful Baroque facade. The interiors are stunning - pretty dark as a result of lacking sunlight with similarly dark huge paintings on its walls. Terrific marble art work as well. Free entry

David Jenkins (4 years ago)
Worth coming here just for this.

Isaac Simpson (6 years ago)
Beautiful cathedral with fascinating history. There are giant paintings on all the walls and the main one is very gruesome, depicting the torture of santa Agatha.

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