Lodi Cathedral

45°18′51.69″N 9°30′11.12″E / 45.3143583°N 9.5030889°E / 45.3143583; 9.5030889 Lodi Cathedral (Italian: Duomo di Lodi, Basilica Cattedrale della Vergine Assunta) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Lodi, Lombardy, Italy. It is also a basilica minor. Dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, it is the seat of the Bishop of Lodi. It is one of the largest churches in northern Italy. The cathedral was founded on 3 August 1158, the day on which Lodi was refounded after its destruction by the Milanese troops in 1111. The first phase of construction, for which it is probable that materials from the old Laus Pompeia (in what is now Lodi Vecchio) were reused, ended in 1163. The crypt was inaugurated with the translation of the relics of Saint Bassianus on 4 November 1163, in the presence of emperor Frederick I Barbarossa. The second phase was carried on from 1170 to 1180, although the façade was completed only in 1284. Later, 18th century restorations altered the appearance of the building, which was however brought back to the original one in 1958–1965. The façade, in brickwork, is asymmetrical and is in a typical Romanesque style, with the exception of the large Gothic entrance portico supported by small columns with lion sculptures at the base.