This church wasn't the easiest to find. The town itself is like a maze like many medieval Italian towns. It was begun in 1063 by Pope Alexander & has 3 masterpieces. The first church here was from the 6th century. Admission was 10 Euros & had a beautiful ceiling. There is a tomb of Guinigi's wife who died in childbirth. There is also a belltower that you can climb.

Lovely cathedral. The Jacopo de Quercia Illario di Carretto statue is quite lovely in a small chapel on the right hand side of the church. Il Voto Santo is under restoration and now supine in a room visible from a large glass window and accompanied by a video, describing its loving restoration.

Lucca Cathedral (Duomo di Lucca, Cattedrale di San Martino) is dedicated to St Martin The Bishop Anselm started to built this catholic cathedral in 1063. The church is on a small plaza..and can be seen from many angles. Strangely all the columns of the façade are different.

The Cathedral exterior is very impressive both when approached from the direction of the station and when viewing the facade. The Cathedral charges for tourist entry to any part of the building, which is unusual for Italy. However, it is well worth paying for the combined ticket that gives entry to the Cathedral, Cathedral museum and Chiesa dei Santi Giovanni e Reparata. The museum is well presented with lots of interesting items. The Cathedral itself is spacious and tasteful, although unfortunately the "Holy Face" was removed for restoration when we were there. The Chiesa dei Santi Giovanni e Reparata includes access to excavations of early churches and other layers underneath the current church, although, despite quite good labelling, it is not easy to distinguish the different layers or make out many of the partial remains.

The church is lovely but I may not have gone in if I wasn’t aware the ticket price of 3€ did not include the tower (another 3€). Magnificent views from the top… definitely worth the 200+ steps! Look for the gaps in the mesh for the best pics 😉