Ciao! I'm Laura.
  • Journal
  • About
  • Writing
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Journal
  • Books
  • Podcast
  • About
    • Writing
  • Contact

Ciao Amalfi

Architecture, Sorrento, Tempting Tuesday · April 28, 2009

Tempting Tuesday: Sorrento’s Surprising Duomo

I guess I have Sorrento on the mind these days, and I have been thinking back to my last visit there on a beautiful day at the end of January. I had walked by the Duomo of Sorrento on previous visits, but hadn’t been there while the church was open. Walking into a church I haven’t visited before is by far one of my favorite experiences in Italy. Sometimes beyond the starkest facade you will discover a church that missed the Baroque redecoration craze and that still offers us a taste of its medieval splendor. Or perhaps that plain facade is hiding an exquisite and well preserved interior from the 17th or 18th centuries. You just never know!

When I walked into the Duomo of San Filippo and San Giacomo in Sorrento, I was certainly surprised! Its simple and bright white facade, rebuilt in the early 20th century with Romanesque hints, reveals little about what you will find inside. While the church may have had ancient origins, it was largely rebuilt in the 1400s. Once inside, you will find a wealth of art on display throughout the elegant and well-preserved marble interior. Don’t miss the marble Bishop’s throne carved in 1573.

What impressed me the most about the Duomo of Sorrento is the incredible intarsio, or inlaid wood, pieces you can find throughout the interior. Sorrento has been known for fine intarsio work since the 18th century, and the Duomo is a veritable museum of masterpieces. Wander up and down the side aisles and you can find pictures, the stations of the cross, large doorways, a beautiful podium, and wooden choir stalls decorated with elaborate and finely detailed intarsio.

Panel on the Choir Stalls
Panel from a door

It was such a pleasure for me to see the work of the local artisans on display throughout the Duomo. For me, churches are like picture books of their surrounding communities. The Duomo of Sorrento is a wonderful example of the continuation of the historical connection between artisans and the church.

Images simply don’t do justice to the beauty of the intarsio work. While you will find examples on display in workshops and stores around Sorrento, this is one of the best stops to see how glorious and impressive it can be. Next time you visit Sorrento, try to stop by the Duomo and see if it surprises you.

In the meantime, take a walk up and down Corso Italia in Sorrento courtesy of Google Maps. I started you at the entrance to the Duomo:


Visualizzazione ingrandita della mappa

Located at the corner of Corso Italia and Via. P.R. Giuliani
Hours variously listed, but try between 8-noon & 5-8pm

Related Posts

Tempting Tuesday: Fishing Boats in the Springtime

Tempting Tuesday: Conca dei Marini in the Springtime

Tempting Tuesday: Stunning Sunsets on the Amalfi Coast

Tempting Tuesday: Naples at Table

Posted In: Architecture, Sorrento, Tempting Tuesday

You’ll Also Love

Tempting Tuesday: Sunset on the Way to Salerno
Tempting Tuesday: My favorite beach on the Amalfi Coast
Tempting Tuesday: Autumn Drive to Monte Faito

Comments

  1. Scintilla @ Bell'Avventura says

    April 28, 2009 at 12:44

    I have been to Sorrento so many times but have never gone in. I suppose I was distracted by getting my shopping done on time to catch the bus back.

    Reply
  2. Laura says

    April 28, 2009 at 12:53

    Ciao Scintilla! Yes, I understand, I am usually doing shopping in Sorrento as well. I ended up with time in Sorrento that day as road construction made us miss the boat to Capri we were intending to take. So instead, we wandered around Sorrento and came back to Amalfi via the tip of the Coast. It was a beautiful day!

    Reply
  3. Chef Chuck says

    April 28, 2009 at 23:49

    What a beautiful church! The amount of woodwork sound very interesting.
    I will visit one day. Thank You,Laura

    Reply
  4. Laura says

    April 29, 2009 at 08:51

    Ciao Chuck! I was really impressed by the woodwork in the Duomo in Sorrento. The details are so intricate and the shades of wood amazing! You would enjoy it!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Next Post >

How to spend six hours at the JFK airport

Trending Now

  • ciao-amalfi-winter-things-to-do Visiting the Amalfi Coast in the Winter – 5 Things You Need to Know
  • Amalfi Coast Travel Positano Beach Spiagga Grande A Guide to the Beaches of Positano
  • Amalfi Coast Webcams New Live Streaming Webcams of Amalfi!
  • Amalfi Coast Beaches Colourful Sun Umbrellas at the Marina Grande Beach in Amalfi - Horizontal A Guide to the Beaches of Amalfi

Ciao!

My name is Laura and the Amalfi Coast is my passion and my home. I’m a writer and photographer who is endlessly inspired by the incredible beauty of the Amalfi Coast. Welcome to Ciao Amalfi!

Ciao Amalfi

  • Journal
  • Moon Amalfi Coast
  • Newsletter
  • Contact

Amalfi Coast

  • Amalfi
  • Positano
  • Ravello
  • Amalfi Coast

Explore

  • Travel
  • History & Culture
  • Food & Drink
  • Shopping

Laura Thayer

  • About
  • Writing
  • Book Reviews
  • Work with Me

Latest on Instagram

A spectacular view of a truly spectacular place as A spectacular view of a truly spectacular place as I flew out of Naples yesterday morning. A little bit delayed due to Winter Storm Olive in the midwest, but I was greeted in central Nebraska by blue skies and flocks of Sandhill cranes and snow geese. “Oh, to love what is lovely” as Mary Oliver wrote about that joyful experience of seeing snow geese golden in a sunny sky. ✨
It’s International Cat Day in Italy, but Puffy s It’s International Cat Day in Italy, but Puffy slept right through it. He’s been such a good cat since we lost Toulouse in September - we’re all still adjusting. This year Puffy will be 15! 🐈
This month’s Ciao Amalfi newsletter is out! A li This month’s Ciao Amalfi newsletter is out! A little bit of a love letter to Amalfi, an excellent book for walking by @robgmacfarlane, February on the Amalfi Coast, and one very dramatic historic photograph. Hope you enjoy the read! {link in bio}

#ciaoamalfi #Amalfi #amalficoast #visitamalfi #visitamalficoast
Woke up with the winter blues and this song I love Woke up with the winter blues and this song I love by Jack Teagarden in my head. 🎶
What 31 days of January morning walks looks like. What 31 days of January morning walks looks like. It’s been gorgeous and windy and stormy and wild - and everything in between. Should I pick a different spot to take a photo a day next month?
Non Amalfi Coast question. Do you wake up in the m Non Amalfi Coast question. Do you wake up in the morning with music or a song in your head? I do nearly every morning and it’s curious to me what shows up. Usually it’s something I’ve been listening to, but sometimes it’s really random, like someone’s left the music room door slightly ajar in the brain. This morning it was a jaunty version of “Loch Lomond” from the 1940s sung by Maxine Sullivan. (You’d think that would be from the random category but I actually listened to it yesterday.) So that’s what was swinging about in my head as I took a walk early this morning. 🎶
Happy Burns Night! I love a country that has a hol Happy Burns Night! I love a country that has a holiday for their national poet. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Here’s one of my favorite poems he wrote.

Musing On The Roaring Ocean
by Robert Burns

Musing on the roaring ocean, 
Which divides my love and me; 
Wearying heav’n in warm devotion, 
For his weal where’er he be. 

Hope and Fear’s alternate billow 
Yielding late to Nature’s law, 
Whispering spirits round my pillow, 
Talk of him that’s far awa. 

Ye whom sorrow never wounded, 
Ye who never shed a tear, 
Care-untroubled, joy-surrounded, 
Gaudy day to you is dear. 

Gentle night, do thou befriend me, 
Downy sleep, the curtain draw; 
Spirits kind, again attend me, 
Talk of him that’s far awa!
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Disclosure

Copyright © 2023 Ciao Amalfi · Theme by 17th Avenue