Martoran Church
La Martorana, Church of Santa Maria del Ammiraglio
Italy, Palermo
Martorana is a church in Palermo, which is one of the two cathedral churches of the diocese of Piana degli Albanesi (Italo-Albanian Catholic Church). It stands in Piazza Bellini, in close proximity to the Arab-Norman temple of San Cataldo and the Baroque churches of Santa Catarina and San Giuseppe dei Teatini.
The church was built in the XII century in the Arab-Norman style. Despite numerous rebuildings and renovations, Martorana is known mainly for its Byzantine mosaics of the 12th century, one of the oldest in Sicily. Experts call it "an architectural collage in which Byzantine ideas, brought to life by local builders and subsequently decorated by Greek mosaicists, exist side by side with Islamic artistic taste."
Modern Martorana is the most visited by tourists medieval church in Palermo. On Saturdays before dinner, weddings usually take place in the temple; it is the most popular church in the city among newlyweds.