Talking Tours

Benvenuto al Duomo! Milan's Cathedral (or, to give it its full title, Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary) is a Gothic masterpiece right in the city's centre. Soon, you'll be exploring every inch of it for yourself. First, though, click here for five need-to-know facts for your journey...

1. It's Italy's largest Church (technically)
Milan Cathedral is the largest place of worship in Italy. St Peter's Basilica is bigger, but it sits in the sovereign state of Vatican City, so Duomo di Milano wins on a technicality! It's also the world's third-largest church.

2. It was nearly worked on by Leonardo da Vinci...
...but he withdrew his model to design the cupola (tiburio) in 1488. In 1490 the project was the commissioned to other architects: Francesco di Giorgio Martini, Giovanni Antonio Amadeo e Giangiacomo Dolcebuono. Construction of the building itself began some 100 years earlier, in 1386.

3. Its history stretches from Leonardo to Napoleon to now...
From medieval beginnings, the Cathedral has grown through the ages. While the completion of the Duomo façade was ordered by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1805, contemporary artists like Tony Cragg work in response to the architecture today.

4. There are some interesting figures up on high...
The Cathedral's long history means its a mix of the medieval, the Gothic, and the modern. This statue was added in the 1930s and depicts heavyweight boxing champion, Primo Carnera.

And the statue on the left above the main entrance, an 1810 work by Camillo Pacetti called the New Law (La Legge Nuova), is believed by some scholars to be the inspiration for the Statue of Liberty in New York!

5. But some of the most treasured details are underfoot...
...like these cheeky twins, part of a large sundial built into the tiles and wall of the Cathedral and showing the signs of the zodiac. 

And, digging even deeper, the Cathedral boasts a vast underground Crypt. The Duomo really is full of secrets.