Duomo di Lodi (Lodi Cathedral)
The façade of Lodi's cathedral stops you before you've crossed Piazza della Vittoria: asymmetrical brickwork, a Gothic entrance portico carried on small columns with lions crouching at the base, a large rose window above two Renaissance mullioned windows that arrived centuries later and somehow still belong. The whole thing is a readable palimpsest of the city's history.
Step inside and the nave opens into three cross-vaulted aisles divided by cylindrical brick pilasters. Go down into the crypt — the oldest part of the building — and find the 12th-century bas-relief at the entrance and, at the altar, a silver case holding the relics of Saint Bassianus, the city's patron.
💛 What travellers fall for
People who come back tend to linger in the cloister Giovanni Battagio designed in 1484, between the church and the Bishop's Palace — brickwork columns, quiet, and easy to miss if you leave straight after the nave. The apse mosaic by Aligi Sassu also rewards a second look once your eyes adjust to the interior light.
The story behind Duomo di Lodi (Lodi Cathedral)
Lodi's cathedral was founded on 3 August 1158, the very day Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa refounded the city after Milanese forces had destroyed the original settlement in 1111. Construction moved quickly: the first phase ended in 1163, and on 4 November that year the crypt was inaugurated in the emperor's presence, with the relics of Saint Bassianus translated there. A second building campaign ran from 1170 to 1180; the façade was completed in 1284.
The bell tower was added between 1538 and 1554 to a design by Callisto Piazza — the same painter whose polyptych of the Massacre of the Innocents hangs inside — though it was left unfinished for military reasons. Eighteenth-century restorations changed the building's character; a campaign between 1958 and 1965 brought it back closer to its Romanesque origins. In March 1970, Pope Paul VI elevated it to a minor basilica.
Good to know
Lodi Railway Station is about 700 metres away — a straightforward walk along Viale Dante Alighieri and Via Garibaldi. Direct trains from Milano Centrale run roughly hourly and take around 31 minutes. Opening hours are not consistently published online, so arrive mid-morning to be safe.
Where is Duomo di Lodi (Lodi Cathedral)?
More tickets & tours for Duomo di Lodi (Lodi Cathedral)
Book directly at the provider
What travellers say about Duomo di Lodi (Lodi Cathedral)
Stupid City,i walked one hour and I don’t find a stupid bench🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Beautiful place
Very beautiful, in city center of lodi.,; Closes by 12/12.30 noon.. 😐
Happening place in Lodi ! Good atmosphere!
Lovedbit
More of Lodi
Discover where to stay, what to do and the best deals for your trip.
Explore Lodi →More attractions in Lodi
All of Lodi →
Background adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA) · map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · ratings & place photos via Google · other photos with per-image credit. Ticket links may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.