Milan Cathedral

Milan Cathedral (or Duomo di Milano in Italian) is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in the central square of the city of Milan in Lombardy, northern Italy. 

Its construction began in 1386 and was completed in 1965. Besides being the seat of the Archdiocese of Milan, it is also one of the most famous and complex Gothic style buildings in Europe. 

Duomo houses the world's largest collection of marble statues. Located at the top of the cathedral is a golden statue, affectionately called the "Madonnina" (Statue of Our Lady) by the citizens of Milan, it is one of the symbols of the city. 

It is possible to go down the marble staircase to the Cathedral Treasury to see and appreciate the artifacts left behind by Christians and Romans. You can also ascend to the Cathedral's terrace to admire the spectacular view of the city. 

Some curiosities: most of the 135 needles you see at the top of the structure are statues of saints and prophets. 

Another curiosity, just after going through the entrance, there is a long golden frieze placed on the floor decorated with the signs of the zodiac. Here, the Duomo meridian is a calendar and sundial, placed in the cathedral in the late 18th century. At noon, a beam of light enters through a small hole in the ceiling of the right nave and strikes the meridian marking the time and period of the month. 

Additionally, the Milan Cathedral houses the largest pipe organ (musical instrument) in Italy (second largest in Europe and one of the largest in the world), possessing 15,800 pipes, in which the largest is more than 9 meters and the smallest a few centimeters.