Santa Maria dei Greci is a gem of the Agrigento old town centre including impressive works of art dating back to the 14th century. This rather interesting gothic church was built on the site of an older site, a 5th century Doric Temple dedicated to Athena. The foundations from the older site have been excavated and you can see them through a glass floor.The church was named Greek because, during the Byzantine domination, was a greek-orthodox cathedral. The current sacred building dates from the twelfth-thirteenth century and it has a simple and strict facade characterized by a Gothic style. The entrance is adorned with a remarkable ogival portal, and the interior has three naves. The church includes precious works of art and frescoes made by some of the most important local artists in the 14th century.
References:The Church of St Donatus name refers to Donatus of Zadar, who began construction on this church in the 9th century and ended it on the northeastern part of the Roman forum. It is the largest Pre-Romanesque building in Croatia.
The beginning of the building of the church was placed to the second half of the 8th century, and it is supposed to have been completed in the 9th century. The Zadar bishop and diplomat Donat (8th and 9th centuries) is credited with the building of the church. He led the representations of the Dalmatian cities to Constantinople and Charles the Great, which is why this church bears slight resemblance to Charlemagne's court chapels, especially the one in Aachen, and also to the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna. It belongs to the Pre-Romanesque architectural period.
The circular church, formerly domed, is 27 m high and is characterised by simplicity and technical primitivism.