Cattedrale di San Martino, Lucca: A Closer looks at Tuscany’s Stunning Cathedral

The San Michele in Foro Basilica in the centre of Lucca is beautiful. It’s surrounded by cafes with al fresco terraces, useful as a kind of external viewing area for the cathedral. And that, along with the oval town square are all that most people visit Lucca for… 

But once a year the Luminara di Sante Croce festival takes place, and the attention turns to the equally stunning Duomo di San Martino and its medieval contents. This cathedral isn’t quite as ornate as the Siena Cathedral, and not as cavernous as the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, but it is exceptional. The interiors are cold and the air smells of old stone and the staleness of the crypt that resides beneath the marble floor. Much of the noise is the hushed tones of subdued talking and the muttering of quickly spoken prayers offered by the devout to the Holy Cross — ithe Basilica’s celebrity resident.

The church is home to a number of intrigues within its confines, including a painting of the last supper by Tintoretto, a labyrinth etched into one of the walls, and the intriguing Volta santo which is housed in its own Temple: the golden Tempietto del Volto Santo (below).

Of all its treasures the golden Tempietto which is locked tight to protect the Volto Santo – a 1000 year old wooden crucifix, is its most intriguing.

Once a year, as in the image below, the Volto Santo is dressed by goldsmiths with a crown, a collar, a medallion, a belt, shoes, a sceptre and the keys of the town, to celebrate the sombre but etnerally beautiful Luminara di Sante Croce festival, which takes place annually on the 13th of September.

The Basilica has a wonderful little story hidden in its exteriors. View it from the outside, and you’ll note that many of the columns are of different design. Nobody is certain as to why, but there’s a legend that states that the inhabitants of Lucca announced a contest for the best column – the winner, presumably, would then have been commissioned to make a full set. Naturally, artists throughout Tuscany made their entry, only for Lucca to take all of them without paying the artists.