Storiadellarte.com: italian art history

Even if Romanesque style architecture was born in France it rapidly expanded in Italy. In the various regions of Italy Romanesque style took on different characteristics, depending on the different economic conditions of each place, on its political organisation and, most importantly, on the availability of building materials. The typical features of this style can usually be found more or less everywhere. In churches and other religious buildings the most common plan was a basilica with a Latin cross, with three or five bays, using cross vaults to replace the wooden trusses which decayed more easily. A cross vault is a stonework vault with a square base, formed by the diagonal intersection of two arches with the same radius which form four ribs. The space beneath each cross vault is called a bay.
Most of the non-religious buildings from this period are fortified castles and towers which gave towns and cities the look they still have today (San Gimignano is an example).
Church of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan
Built between the XI and XII centuries the basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan is a classic example of Romanesque art in northern Italy. It is a rectangular-plan basilica with three naves. The middle nave is twice as wide as the side naves which are the base of the matroneum. There are four bays in the central nave: three are covered by cross vaults with ribs and the fourth by a dome. A typical feature of this church are the so called ‘bundle pillars’. i.e. pillars formed by smaller pillars or columns on the axis or at the corner of the cross vaults.
Cathedral of Modena
The building of Modena’s cathedral began in 1099 and ended only in the XIV century. It is a rectangular-plan church with three naves divided by eight bundle pillars and covered by cross vaults with ribs. The famous architect Lanfranco and the sculptor Wiligelmo worked on the building of this cathedral. The matroneum is on the side naves, like in the Church of Sant'Ambrogio, marked by three-mullioned windows but, unlike the Sant'Ambrogio matroneum, it cannot be entered. Three-mullioned windows can be seen in the church exterior. This was how the architect chose to connect the exterior of the church with the interior.
San Miniato al Monte a Firenze

Il duomo di Pisa

San Marco a Venezia

Il duomo di Monreale