The Palatine Chapel was described by Guy de Maupassant as the most beautiful church in the world.
It is located inside the Norman Palace which was built in the Palaeopolis, the highest and oldest part of the city. The Palatine Chapel, which means chapel of the Palace, was commissioned by Roger II of Altavilla, the first Norman king of Sicily and was used by the latter as a private chapel in 1130. Once its exterior appearance was totally different to today. Of its original facade there is almost nothing left because it was incorporated by other more recent structures. Originally it stood isolated, the apse facing east as the Byzantine tradition dictates.
Palatine Chapel: Architecture and dual identity
To the west stands a Latin church, its three naves separated by ten granite columns, and to the east, in the presbytery, lies a small Eastern Christian Byzantine church, square in form and crowned with a hemispherical dome reminiscent of those in Greece or Turkey. At first glance, it feels like stepping into a typical Christian church, but a closer look reveals two distinct small churches within. Inscriptions on the walls, written in both Latin and Greek, show that during the time of Roger II, the two traditions coexisted in harmony, with services held in both languages.
The Palatine Chapel stands at a time of great creativity, when artists of different origins and sensibilities worked together and the result was a masterpiece where you can recognize the policy of tolerance adopted by Roger II.
The King wants to show us that here we meet the culture of the East and the West, but not only, because if we look carefully at the floor we can see mosaics here, but not of glass but of precious stones such as porphyry for example. So the floor is Arabic and Arabic are also the stylized palmettes on the walls above which we find the Byzantine mosaics.
Mosaics materials and symbolism
Byzantine mosaics are made up of two sheets of glass between which there is a very thin layer of gold. So what glitters is gold, as is the Word God.
God is light and to represent God one must use the most precious thing that exists. Norman and Byzantine Arabs worked together here thanks to the policy of tolerance adopted by Roger II.
Let us remember that at the time of the Normans not everyone knew how to read and write, so Roger adopted a language that could be understood by all. Let’s think of illustrated books… here is an illustrated book for everyone, an illustrated book that tells the stories of Christ, the stories of Genesis, the history of the Old Testament, the stories of Saints Peter and Paul.
Presbytery geometry and iconography
Observing the presbytery we realize how ingenious the workers who worked here were…
Everything has meaning, nothing is left to chance. The presbytery first appears as a square, symbolizing the earth with its four elements: earth, water, air, and fire. In the drum, the shape transforms into an octagon through double niches at the corners; eight represents resurrection and universal judgment, the unknown leading to perfection—a clever way to reach the circle, a shape without beginning or end that represents God.
The dome symbolizes the heavenly kingdom, with Christ as supreme lord, surrounded by archangels and angels as his soldiers. Around the dome is the inscription: “Heaven is my throne, earth is the stool of my feet” (Isaiah 66:1; Acts 7:49).
The drum features the four evangelists and prophets. In the apse, Christ Pantocrator appears, the Lord of Creation, blessing in Greek with his left hand and holding the Bible in his right, inscribed in Greek and Latin: “I am the light of the world; whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”
Below him is the Madonna, which is not original to the twelfth century but a Baroque addition to cover a window that once welcomed the first rays of sunlight into the church. The original Madonna can be seen above the arch before the apse, depicting the Annunciation: on the left, the angel Gabriel, a dove, and a ray of light—the Holy Spirit.
Interesting is the image that illustrates the separation of the land from the sea. The terrestrial globe is a water sphere with at its centre three parts of land representing the three continents then known: Europe, Africa and Asia, divided by strips of sea that form a Y, symbol of the trinity. You can also see the scene of Adam’s creation: you can see a great resemblance between the face of God and that of Adam, underlined by the Latin phrase: creavit ominem at imaginem sua.
Ceiling and Islamic art
The ceiling of the Palatine Chapel is unique in the world and of considerable importance and value. This is a ceiling fatimita muquarnas which means stalactites or alveoli.
This self-supporting structure is made up of very thin boards of Abies nebrodensis (Nebrodi fir). What we see are 750 paintings on wood independent of each other and what is represented by artists unfortunately unknown to us but certainly coming from North Africa, is the representation of the Koranic paradise, in essence are represented all the pleasures of the senses and spirit that await believers.
You can see trees, monsters, peacocks, eagles; men squatting with their legs crossed like a Muslim, generally in the act of drinking, or going hunting, pipe players, drummers, castanets and harps and dance scenes. All these scenes belong to the Islamic secular iconography, whose images symbolically represented the wish for a happy life after death.
These artists work for God, in fact, the love and perfection with which the artists painted these scenes of daily life testify to the spirit with which they worked and the dedication directed only to the glorification of God, in fact, the work, according to the dictates of Islam, is a form of worship.
Sculptural masterpiece and candelabrum
The monolithic candelabrum, 4.26 metres high, which can be seen on the right next to the ambo and which is still used today on Easter Day, deserves special mention; in fact, the priest reads the gospel with the light of the candle placed on it.
This sculptural masterpiece in white marble is divided into five orders and rests on four lions that bite men and beasts; the lions are the symbol of the Normans. At the hundredth of the candelabrum, Christ jumps immediately to the eye, depicted with a beard, sitting on a pillow and holding a book, at his feet the figure of a man dressed as an ecclesiastic, probably Roger II who commissioned the work.
Palatine Chapel: Practical visitor information
- Tickets and hours: Buy tickets and confirm current opening times on the chapel’s official channels; schedules may change for restoration and some areas can be temporarily closed.
- Official notices: The foundation that manages the site posts updates about restoration work and visitor arrangements; consult those notices before planning your trip.
- UNESCO status: The Palatine Chapel is part of the Arab‑Norman Palermo ensemble inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
- Tips: Check opening hours the day before your visit; bring ID for possible concessions; consider a guided tour or an audio guide to fully appreciate the iconography and symbolic program.
Patrizia Pileri
Info: Cappella Palatina
