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Places of worship
San Martino Cathedral, Lucca

Lucca Cathedral, named after San Martino, is believed to have been built by San Frediano, the bishop of Lucca, after his death in 588. The facade, inspired by Pisa Cathedral, is a masterpiece of the Lucchese Romanesque in polychrome marble with its large three-arched portico overlooking the square and beautiful bas-reliefs. Stalls where currency was exchanged for pilgrims travelling the Via Francigena were located under these arches. The mysterious labyrinth carved on one of the pillars may be a symbol of pilgrimage or a work of art linked with the templars, given its reminiscence with the floor of Chartres Cathedral. The three-nave interior is a striking space due to its Gothic forms; it houses many artworks like Domenico Ghirlandaio’s Madonna on a Throne with Child and Saints and Jacopo Tintoretto’s Last Supper. The cathedral is also home to the Holy Face, a wooden crucifix that is said to have been made by Nicodemus, based on the face of Jesus Christ, which was placed in a magnificent fifteenth-century temple by Matteo Civitali. 

GENERAL INFO
Address
Piazza Antelminelli, 55100 Lucca LU, Italia
Municipality
Lucca (LU)
GPS coordinates
43.8406634,10.50575219999996
Opening hours
Low season (entrance until daylight saving time) Monday to Friday: 9:30am, 5pm Saturday: 9:30am, 6pm. Sunday: 11:30am, 5pm. High season (daylight saving time) Weekdays: 9:30am, 6pm. Saturday: 9:30am, 6:45pm. Sunday: 9am, 10am, 11:45am, 6pm.
Hours for Mass
Saturday and before holidays: 7pm.
Contact person
Don Lucio Malanca
Telephone
0583 490530
Accessibility
Yes
CONFESSION
Name (priest, religious figure, monk, nun)
Don Lucio Malanca
Telephone
0583 493187; 333 3375372
Accessibility
Yes
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