At the end of the 15th century, the Cathedral adopted the first new Renaissance forms during the episcopate of Domenico Xarth. Gothic forms were replaced by Renaissance architectural forms, as clearly evidenced by the De Marinis Chapel.
In 1493, the De Marinis Chapel was created by sculptors Giovannello Gagini and Andrea Mancino. This valuable Renaissance sepulchral monument with an arcosolium is preceded by an imposing arch linked to the architectural lines of Matteo Carnilivari. The monument was commissioned by the heirs of Gaspare De Marinis, who died in 1492, already buried in the cathedral, and was made by Giovannello Gagini and Andrea Mancino in 1493. Between 1470 and 1570, the bell tower was built on the southwestern side of the building, commissioned by Giovanni Montaperto.
Bishop Giuliano Cybo (1506-1537) undertook the restoration of the Cathedral and commissioned a new wooden truss ceiling for the central nave. To cover the costs, the bishop asked Pope Julius II for permission to collect alms for the work.
Twelve trusses with biblical scenes were created, taken from the Old and New Testaments. The ceiling adheres to the new Renaissance forms, within a late Gothic expressive language. The complex decorative program unites the rich and varied repertoire of the medieval world with the Renaissance world. The iconographic layout aims to synthesize religious and secular themes, combining stories from the Bible, heraldic subjects, and literary themes, presented in a decorative context with a Renaissance imprint. Various artists of strong Mediterranean influence are recognized in the execution of the ceiling.
In 1540, during the episcopate of Pietro Tagliavia di Aragona (1537-1544), the church was divided into three naves and completed with many dedicated side altars.
The main altar of the cathedral housed a splendid altar structure in porphyry marble (today dismantled and kept in the Chapel of the Redeemer) depicting respectively Saint John the Baptist, the Annunciation of Mary, the Nativity, the Resurrection, and the Ascension, the Assumption of the Virgin, Saint John the Evangelist, and a cloth with the Last Judgment. The main altar was flanked on one side by the Chapel of the Body of Jesus, newly built at that time, covered in wood with its gilded wooden structure and decorated with representations of the Last Supper and the Resurrection of Christ, closed by grates; on the other side, the Chapel of Our Lady of Graces (today only the statue of the Madonna is preserved; once, the statue of the Madonna was accompanied by a tribune of saints in stucco). Following, the Chapel (or altar) of Saint Barbara, the Chapel of Saint Mary of Monserrato (today the statue is preserved at MUDIA) and Saint Giles, the Chapel of Saint Mary of the Snow, the Chapel of Saint Margaret, the Chapel of Saint Jerome De Marinis, the Chapel of Saint Agatha, the Chapel of Saint Gregory, the Chapel of Saint Thomas of Canterbury, the Chapel of the Ascension, the Chapel of Saint John the Evangelist, the Chapel of Saint Dionysius of France, the Chapel of Saint Sylvester, the Chapel of Saint Onuphrius, the Chapel of Saint Michael, the Chapel of Saint George, the Chapel of Saint Lucy located at the Chapel of the Holy Crucifix, and finally the Chapel of Saint Bartholomew in the clock tower.
The Choir was placed in the center of the main nave, in front of the presbytery, and in 1568 it received a wooden covering made by Maestri Marco Lo Cascio and Domenico Rasca, still present today.
Summary: The Renaissance cathedral is characterized by the first section of the wooden truss ceiling, still present today, created by the will of Bishop Giuliano Cybo between 1511 and 1514; the sepulchral monument of the De Marinis family, still present today, made in 1493 by the sculptors Giovannello Gagini and Andrea Mancino; the bell tower of the Montaperto family, still present today; the Choir made in 1568 by Maestri Marco Lo Cascio and Domenico Rasca, still present today; the Madonna delle Grazie by the Gagini school, still present today.
