Cathedral of Maria Santissima Assunta in Caltabellotta
The Cathedral of Maria Santissima Assunta in Caltabellotta, also known as Cathedral of Triokala, stands isolated on the rounded top of the Rupe Gogàla, in a suggestive rocky scenery.
The term Triokala refers to the ancient city of Triokala, one of the first Christian dioceses to arise in Sicily which had San Pellegrino as its first bishop.
It was built at the behest of Count Roger who wanted to build a temple dedicated to St. George, his protector, in the place where which he won the battle against the Saracens in 1090. For this reason the church stands in a marginal place with respect to the inhabited area, at a time when the mother church was located in a central position with respect to the town.
The latest structural completion works revealed that the fifth chapel was the apse of the first proto-Christian church of the place, on which the Arabs built a mosque in about 850. Following the victory of Roger over the Muslims in 1090, it was changed to a Cathedral.
The church has a simple façade in bare stone and is flanked by the bell tower, locally called "Torre del Mortorio".
The simplicity of the exterior is contrasted by the magnificence of the interior adorned with frescoes, stuccos and valuable works of art. The church is divided into three naves by sturdy cylindrical and semi-octagonal pillars, surmounted by very simple capitals that support pointed arches.
Of particular artistic value is the chapel of the Madonna della "Catena". The work, created by Antonino Ferraro in 1590, on the external front arch represents the Assumption of the Madonna among the angels while on the two side columns the prophets Jeremiah and Isaiah are represented. The interior of the chapel is divided into two work levels: at the bottom of the frescoes that speak of the Exodus and the Jewish people; at the top are represented, in life size, San Giovanni Battista and San Girolamo, Sant'Antonio di Padova, San Rocco, San Placido, Santa Barbara, Sant'Onofrio known as "Lu pilusu", San Crispino, San Crispiniano, Santa Marta, Santa Cecilia and San Sebastiano
Among the works kept inside the church, of particular value are: two Madonnas with Child and the marble statue of a bishop saint, all of the Gagini school.
The church suffered considerable damage during the 1968 earthquake.
