The second largest city in the province of Cremona, Crema is dominated by the massive Duomo, a remarkable example of Gothic-Lombard architecture. The simple gabled profile of the facade is enriched by numerous decorative elements that accentuate its pictorial value: high arches, small arches, mullioned windows, three rose windows, and a splendid portal. Around the main square, numerous churches and palaces are distributed in an urban fabric that preserves its medieval and Renaissance physiognomy, including the imposing Palazzo Terni de’ Gregori, an unfinished 18th-century building of great beauty, and the former Augustinian convent, now home to the civic museum. Crema’s jewels certainly include the Sanctuary of Santa Maria della Croce, which stands just outside the town. It was built for Marian veneration after numerous miraculous events occurred following the apparition of Our Lady, on April 3, 1490, to Caterina degli Uberti. The structure, built by Giovanni Battagio, a pupil of Bramante, presents on the outside a pleasant alternation between the dominant color of terracotta and soberly plastered areas of light-colored plaster, in keeping with the tradition of 15th-century Lombardy, while inside it contains numerous frescoes by major Cremasque and Cremonese artists.
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