The Cathedral of St. Paul, and adjacent bishopric, stands at the top of the acropolis of Alatri (province of Frosinone). The present-day structure of the two buildings, both medieval in origin, is due to continuous restructuring work that began in the 18th century. The stone and cement façade and the bell tower were added by Jacopo Subleyras between 1790 and 1808, while the Chapel of St. Sixtus I was built to house the saint’s remains in 1932 on the 800th anniversary of their translation to Alatri.
The cathedral interior is on a Latin cross layout with three naves and a raised presbytery which conserves priceless Cosmatesque artefacts from 1222, the reliquary and statue of St. Sixtus I and the famous reliquary of the Eucharistic Miracle of the Incarnate Host: a eucharistic wafer that miraculously transformed into human flesh in about 1227.
The reliquary of the Roman martyr Alexander, brought to Alatri in 1640 from the Catacombs of San Callisto, can be found at the end of the right nave. The artwork present includes: a copy of The Crucifixion by Guido Reni; the face of St. Sixtus I in repoussé chased silver (1584); the Madonna del Suffragio, a wooden sculpture from 1639; and a 17th century Pietà by painter Girolamo Troppa in the sacristy.
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