San Leo Cathedral photo copyrighted by: Brian McMorrow Even it on the edge of the cliff, the Cathedral of San Leone was begun in 1173,
a majestic Romanesque work guided by Emilian-Lombard architects over the course of the 13th century with Gothic additions. The entrance, like the nearby
Parish Church, is not in the façade but on the side, overhung by busts of San
Leone and San Valentino. Both the exterior and interior are in smooth, tan
sandstone and together simple and austere. The unique decorative element
are the beautiful capitals, partially bare Corinthian from the 3rd century A.D.
and partially Romanesque, of which the oldest represent primitive Christian
symbols; even the columns are bare. The layout of the church is Latin-cross,
with two minor naves to the sides divided in four spans; the transept leads to the
high tri-apse presbytery, risen over a large vaulted crypt subdivided into five little naves. In the apse of the crypt was the sarcophagus with the remains of San Leone; today, however, it holds only the cover with inscription, dating back to the 6th century.
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