Sepolture e tradizioni funerarie nella cattedrale di Salerno (VIII-XV secolo)

In the cathedral of Salerno several funerary monuments are located in the quadriporch. These are almost ancient sarcophagi re-used during medieval times both by noble families and archbishops, yet most of them are not in their original position. In fact, during the restauration works in the 1930s, intended as they were to restore the Norman aspect of the building, a lot of tombs originally placed in the naves of the cathedral were brought outside to create a sort of “open museum” of the city. This paper will consider the funerary art tradition in Salerno during the Middle Ages and will analyze documentary sources for the recognition of these tombs to understand how the most important families marked their presence in the most sacred space of the city. The analysis of liturgical sources will help in understanding the public dimension of the funerary rites and the construction of a peculiar civic identity. Finally, if analyzed from a comparative perspective, the Salernitan case will show the autonomous choices and strong interest of the city in exhibiting its medieval identity.