The Cathedral Museum and Treasure, inaugurated in 2012, is housed in the basement of St. Alexander’s Cathedral where, during the 2004 renovation of the facilities, some archaeological evidence of Bergamo’s history from the 10th century B.C. to the 16th century came to light: traces of prehistoric settlements, remains of Roman domus, and evidence of the early Christian church and Romanesque cathedral.
With this Museum, the Diocese of Bergamo wants to make known the history of its church, to illustrate the construction events that involved this place and, through the display of precious objects of art and liturgy, to approach the visitor to the atmosphere of sacredness and beauty that characterized the life of the ancient Cathedral of St. Vincent.
Thanks to a complex excavation campaign (2004 – 2012), traces of a Roman site, the early Christian Cathedral of St. Vincent and the later Romanesque Cathedral, wrapped in the Renaissance reconstruction of the architect Filarete, have emerged in the subsoil of the cathedral.
The plan of the excavation finds highlights well the evolutionary stages of this place, which was already inhabited from the 10th century B.C. onward.
From the first century B.C. to the fourth century A.D., the area was occupied by a neighborhood of Roman layout, adjacent to the forum, crossed by a commercial street onto which overlooked stores, artisan workshops and residential domus with rich architectural and decorative features.
A cathedral dedicated to St. Vincent arose in the 5th century.
The dimensions of the basilica were impressive: it measured no less than 45 meters long by 24 meters wide and was the largest sacred edifice in the city.
The line of the perimeter walls of that structure was maintained in later building phases and corresponds (excluding the eastern side of the chancel) to the perimeter of the present church.
The Cathedral Museum tells the intricate story of this evolution, including archaeological finds and artistic artifacts.
At the heart of the itinerary is the Treasure of the Cathedral, the collection of the most precious objects that have survived and been kept over the centuries.
Volunteer members of the Italian Touring Club welcome visitors on the following days:
Saturday – Sunday 14:30 – 17:30
www.touringclub.it/apertipervoi
