Description of the attraction
Cattolica di Stilo is a Byzantine church located in the town of Stilo in the Italian region of Calabria. The building is a national monument.
Cattolica was built in the 9th century when Calabria was part of the Byzantine Empire. The name of the church comes from the Greek word for "Catholics", which means churches with baptisteries. Today Cattolica di Stilo, along with the Church of San Marco in the town of Rossano Calabro, is one of the most outstanding examples of Byzantine architecture.
The church was built in the form of an "inscribed cross", which was typical of the Byzantine architecture of that period. The interior is divided into five identical spaces by means of four columns. The central square room and the side ones are crowned with domes, and the side ones have vestibules of the same diameter. And the central dome is slightly higher and larger in size than the others. The southern part of the church, ending with three apses, stands on three stone foundations. The Cattolica building itself is made of bricks.
The interior of the church was once entirely painted with frescoes. In the left apse there is a bell, cast in 1577, when the church was transferred to the hands of the Catholics. In addition, inside you can see several inscriptions in Arabic, which suggests that Cattolica once served as a Muslim temple. One of the inscriptions reads: "There is only one God."
In the very town of Stilo, located 150 km from Reggio di Calabria, a number of interesting sights have been preserved. For example, the Cathedral, the churches of San Domenico and San Nicola da Tolentino, the Norman castle of Roger II and the Dolphin Fountain. Nearby is the ancient monastery of San Giovanni Teristis.
