Rapolla Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel. Formerly the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Rapolla, it is now a co-cathedral in the Diocese of Melfi-Rapolla-Venosa.
The structure was erected in a Romanesque style in 1209 on the site of a paleochristian building, possibly occupying the site of a pagan temple. The belltower was designed by Sarolo di Muro Lucano. Rebuilt a few decades later in 1253, by Melchiorre da Montalbano, it has survived in this earthquake-prone region. The interior with three naves, separated by columns and arches, houses a 16th-century crucifix with bas-reliefs depicting Adam and Eve and the Annunciation by Sarolo da Muro Lucano. The apse also has a 13th-century carved polychrome wooden crucifix.
References:The Villa d'Este is a 16th-century villa in Tivoli, near Rome, famous for its terraced hillside Italian Renaissance garden and especially for its profusion of fountains: the extraordinary system contains fifty-one fountains and nymphaeums, 398 spouts, 364 water jets, 64 waterfalls, and 220 basins, fed by 875 meters of canals, channels and cascades, and all working entirely by the force of gravity, without pumps. It is now an Italian state museum, and is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site.
Tivoli had been a popular summer residence since ancient Roman times due to its altitude, cooler temperatures and its proximity to the Villa Hadriana, the summer residence of the Emperor Hadrian I.
The Villa was commissioned by Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este (1509-1572), second son of Alfonso I d'Este, the Duke of Ferrara and grandson of Pope Alexander VI, along with Lucrezia Borgia.