The Majestic Altar by Alessandro Tremignon (1670)
The high altar is a monument of exceptional artistic merit and qualifies as the most prestigious sculptural work in the cathedral. A decorated arch upon a high plinth the high alter is situated in a key position within the cathedral, attracting attention from within the whole of the central area of the building. The artist has managed here to unite brilliantly those ideas which the commissioner of the work desired. This meant melding, in fact, in the geometric and ideal center of the temple, the symbols of the two principal objects of cult: the devotion to the saint expressed in the cathedral devoted to Maria Assunta and that to the two Patron Saints of the city. A masterpiece of architecture, sculpture and painting, all three united in perfect symbiosis. From small decorative pillars flanking the stories of The Virgin (beginning with a stupendous 'Annunciation' to the 'Assumption') and of the Martyr Saints (from the moment of their arrest to their 'Glorification', emerge 11 singing cherubs, who invoke Donatello's poetic 'putti' in Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence. The nine splendid scenes are decorated with precious stones such as agate, lapis lazuli, cornelian and alabaster.
