Oria Cathedral (Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta) is the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Oria. In 1750 the then bishop of Oria demolished the 13th-century Romanesque cathedral that stood previously on the site, which had been left unsafe by the earthquake of February 20, 1743. Two columns from the old church were purchased for 8000 ducats for use in the Capella Reggia of Caserta.
The new church was reconsecrated in 1756. The façade includes a clock tower to the left and a campanile to the right. The dome is covered with polychrome tiles. The interior is richly decorated. The interior of the church has a crypt with niches containing mummified bodies.
In 1992, Pope John Paul II granted the cathedral the status of a minor basilica.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.