Over six thousand square metres of golden mosaics above Palermo
On a hill eight kilometres from Palermo, overlooking the valley of orange groves called the Conca d'Oro, King William II built in 1174 a cathedral and a Benedictine abbey to rival the archbishop of Palermo. The result is one of the greatest monuments of the Middle Ages, part of the UNESCO Arab-Norman site.
The interior is entirely covered by gold mosaics on a surface of more than 6,000 square metres: the stories of the Old and New Testament, culminating in the gigantic Christ Pantocrator in the apse, his hand raised in blessing. Next to the church, the cloister has 228 pairs of columns, each one decorated differently with mosaics and carved capitals telling biblical stories and scenes of daily life.
Tip: climb onto the terraces of the cathedral for the view over the Conca d'Oro; mid-morning light makes the mosaics glow.
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