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Since 1488 the inhabitants of Pavia wanted a Renaissance cathedral to be rebuilt to replace the ancient Romanesque cathedral of St. Stefano and S.ta Maria del Popolo. At the beginning, Bramante, an architect from Urbino, was given the project with da Vincis consultancy. Then Bramante continued his work by following Amadeos instructions. The ambitions construction continued with difficulty in the 17th and 18th centuries; in the 19th century the imposing dome (the third in size in Italy) was carried out together with the façade still lacking its marble cover. In order to prove the initial magnificence and refinement of the project, the town museums house the wonderful wooden model carved by local skilled craftsmen in the early 16th century. In front of the cathedral there is the bronze statue of the Regisole, which is F. Messinas modern copy of the original in Ravenna, the war trophy, destroyed by the Jacobins.