Larino

Larino stands among the hills of Molise, south of the Adriatic coast. Its medieval town grew apart from the remains of the Roman settlement of Larinum, where an amphitheatre and mosaics recall an older urban centre. The cathedral, dedicated to Saint Pardo, is a prominent monument of the later town and the historic seat of its bishop.

Consecrated in 1319, the cathedral has a richly carved portal and a great rose window on its façade. Its bell tower was built in stages: an inscription dates the lower part to 1451, while further work followed in the sixteenth century. The town remained a centre of ecclesiastical life and, in 1806, became the seat of a district under the new administration of the Kingdom of Naples.