Cefalù

Cefalù lies on Sicily's northern coast beneath a great rocky height overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. Its cathedral, with twin towers and brilliant mosaics, dominates the town between the rock and the shore. Roger II founded the church in 1131, soon after becoming king of Sicily. Its intended role as a royal monument gave the coastal town a place in the ambitions of his dynasty.

Building continued for more than a century before the cathedral was consecrated in 1267. The image of Christ in the apse and the painted wooden ceiling reflect the different artistic traditions that met in Norman Sicily. The fortress-like church remained the centre of Cefalù's bishopric and a prominent landmark for sailors approaching the Sicilian coastal town by sea.