Duomo Nuovo (Cattedrale estiva di Santa Maria Assunta)

Brescia’s New Cathedral, dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta, stands on Piazza Paolo VI beside the Romanesque Old Cathedral. Begun in 1604 over the remains of the early Christian basilica of San Pietro de Dom, the Baroque church was completed with its dome in 1825.

Why it matters

The Duomo Nuovo and the neighbouring Rotonda share the cathedral life of the Diocese of Brescia, reflecting the city’s long religious history. Giovanbattista Lantana designed the new church in 1604, but financial difficulties prolonged construction for more than two centuries. The completed dome and Botticino-marble façade define one of the city’s principal civic and religious spaces.

What to notice

The Greek-cross plan opens into a monumental interior beneath the dome. The Arca di Sant’Apollonio, made in 1510 with reliefs attributed to Maffeo Olivieri, preserves an earlier Renaissance tradition. The cathedral also contains works by Moretto, Romanino, Palma il Giovane and Iacopo Zoboli, as well as a 1984 monument to Pope Paul VI by Raffaele Scorzelli. The dome’s lantern is visible across much of the city.

Context and history

Lantana’s project began in 1604 on the site of the early Christian basilica of San Pietro de Dom. Construction continued through Baroque and neoclassical phases, with the dome completed in 1825. The present cathedral is the ‘summer cathedral’ alongside the eleventh-century Rotonda, the ‘winter cathedral’. The two churches preserve complementary phases of Brescia’s religious history on the same square.