Milan Cathedral (Duomo)

In front of you is the cathedral that took Milan almost six centuries to finish. Work began in 1386 on the initiative of Archbishop Antonio da Saluzzo, and Gian Galeazzo Visconti soon took charge and imposed a far more ambitious design. Hence the Milanese saying «lungo come la fabbrica del Duomo», «as long as building the Duomo», for anything that never ends.

1Marble by water

Gian Galeazzo chose marble from Candoglia, near Lake Maggiore. The blocks came down the lake, the Ticino river and the Naviglio Grande canal to Milan. They were marked AUF, ad usum fabricae, «for the use of the works», which exempted them from tolls. The Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo, which ran the building works, still exists and still looks after the cathedral.

2Napoleon and the Madonnina

The façade remained unfinished for centuries. Napoleon, who was crowned King of Italy in this cathedral in 1805, ordered it completed, and the work was finished in 1813. The highest spire reaches about 108 metres, and at its tip, since 1774, gleams the Madonnina, a gilded copper Virgin just over four metres tall.

For a long time it was customary to build nothing taller than the Madonnina; when that was exceeded, a copy was placed on top of the Pirelli skyscraper.

3What to look for

• The Madonnina, the golden dot on the central spire.
• The bronze doors, with scenes in relief.
• The spires and statues, each with its own little figure.