Cattedrale di San Zeno

Pistoia Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Zeno, faces the city's principal square. First documented in 923, it preserves a Romanesque structure and the celebrated Silver Altar of Saint James, a major work of medieval goldsmiths.

Why it matters

The cathedral is closely tied to Pistoia's civic and religious history. Its documented presence in the tenth century precedes a major Romanesque rebuilding in the twelfth century. The Silver Altar, begun in 1287, reflects the city's medieval devotion to Saint James and is considered one of the outstanding works of Gothic goldsmithery.

What to notice

The fourteenth-century portico frames the entrance, with an Andrea della Robbia Madonna and Child above the doorway. Inside, the three-nave Romanesque plan rises to a raised presbytery. In the Chapel of Saint James, the silver altar was assembled over several centuries; Ghiberti's 1407 reliquary for an arm of the apostle stands behind it. A marble compass rose near the Holy Door marks the cathedral's association with pilgrimage.

Context and history

A fire in 1202 damaged the church but did not destroy it. The portico was first recorded in 1335, and Jacopo Lafri transformed the apse area in 1598. Restoration between 1952 and 1966 returned the building toward its Romanesque appearance. The cathedral was elevated to minor-basilica status in 1965; parish functions were transferred in 1984.