Prato Cathedral
| Prato Cathedral Duomo di Prato; Cattedrale di Santo Stefano (Italian) |
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The west front of the cathedral
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| Basic information | |
| Location | Prato, Italy |
| Geographic coordinates | 43°52′55″N 11°05′52″E / 43.88194°N 11.09778°ECoordinates: 43°52′55″N 11°05′52″E / 43.88194°N 11.09778°E |
| Affiliation | Roman Catholic |
| Province | Prato |
| Country | Italy |
| Architectural description | |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Architectural style | Romanesque |
| Groundbreaking | 11c |
| Completed | 15c |
Prato Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Prato; Cattedrale di San Stefano) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prato, Tuscany, Central Italy, from 1954 the seat of the Bishop of Prato, having been previously, from 1653, a cathedral in the Diocese of Pistoia and Prato. It is dedicated to Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr.
It is one of the most ancient churches in the city, and was already in existence in the 10th century. It was built in several successive stages in the Romanesque style. The church contains a number of notable works of art, in particular fine sculpture.
The church of Saint Stephen was built in a green meadow (Prato) after an appearance of the Virgin Mary near the village of Borgo al Cornio (the present center of Prato). The first building was a small parish church. which the earliest document dates from AD 994.
The expansion of the church began in the 15th century and transformed the modest building into one of the most lovely Gothic-Romanesque buildings in Tuscany.
The cathedral is documented as early as the 10th century as the Pieve di Santo Stefano, located in the Borgo al Cornio, the first settlement in Prato.
The current structure dates from the Romanesque period of the 12th century: the nave, side walls and greater part of the bell tower remain from this date. The upper stage of the bell tower was constructed in 1356.
During the 14th century the cathedral acquired an important relic, the Sacra Cintola or Belt of the Holy Virgin. This brought about the enlargement of the edifice by the addition of a transept which is attributed to Giovanni Pisano, but is probably the work of a pupil of Nicola Pisano. The Cintola Chapel was also built at this time to house the relic.
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