Cattedrale di San Siro

Cattedrale di San Siro stands in Sanremo as the city’s oldest religious building and a major Romanesque landmark in western Liguria. Its three naves form a parallelogram, with columns, pointed arches, rough black stone, and Gothic capitals shaping the interior.

The present church rose under Comacini masters in the early twelfth century, replacing a Christian church traditionally dated to 811. A record from 1143 provides its earliest documented mention, while later centuries brought Baroque alterations, bombardment damage, and restoration work that recovered much of its Romanesque character. The bell tower remains Baroque, and its twelve bells reflect repeated rebuilding after conflict and upheaval. Beneath it, archaeologists found remains of an earlier church built before the year 1000.

Two side doors preserve striking bas-reliefs by unknown stonemasons: one shows a donkey between date palms, while the other presents the Virgin and Child with Saints Siro and Romulus. Inside, Anton Maria Maragliano’s crucifix and Madonna del Rosario accompany the fifteenth-century black crucifix, linked to a local story of a miraculous smile. The right-hand doorway is known as the Porta del cappero, recalling a caper plant that once grew beside it.