| Jurisdiction: | Diocese |
| Scala | |
| Latin: | Scala (adjective: Scalensis) |
| Local: | Scala |
| Coordinates: | 40.65°N 50°W |
| Province: | Archdiocese of Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni |
| Area Km2: | 13 |
| Population: | 1498 |
| Population As Of: | 2001 |
| Denomination: | Roman Catholic |
| Rite: | Latin Rite |
| Established: | 987 AD (suppressed on 27 June 1818) |
| Bishop Title: | Titular Archbishop |
| Edward Joseph Adams | |
| Dipstyle: | His Excellency |
| Offstyle: | Your Excellency |
| Relstyle: | Titular Archbishop of Scala |
The Diocese of Scala is a titular see of the Catholic Church, currently held by Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams, Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain.[1] [2] [3]
It was established in 987 as a regular diocese with its cathedra (seat) in Scala on the Amalfi Coast of Italy. On 31 July 1603 it merged aeque principaliter (Latin for "equally important") with the diocese of Ravello. On 27 June 1818 the Diocese of Ravello and Scala was suppressed by Pope Pius VII and all its territory was incorporated into the Archdiocese of Amalfi, now the Archdiocese of Amalfi-Cava de' Tirreni.
In 1968 it was established as a titular see and has been held by auxiliary bishops and papal nuncios since then.
Scala is the oldest town on the Amalfi coast, set about above sea level. According to tradition, it was founded in the 4th century AD by a group of shipwrecked Romans trying to make their way to Constantinople. A fortified bulwark, Scala was part of the defensive system of the territory of Amalfi. Its history is closely related to that of the Marine Republic of Amalfi. It was a bishopric from 987 to 1818. In 1073 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy, after a strong siege, Scala was burned by Robert Guiscard. Soon after, it was sacked by the Pisans, by Ottone Brunswich (1210), and by the Sicilians (1283).[4]
With more than a thousand-year history, Scala during the height of its economic splendor had about 130 churches. It is also noted as the birthplace of Gerard Thom (Gerardo de Saxo), the founder of the Order of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, or the Knights Hospitaller.
The cathedral of the diocese, dedicated to Saint Lawrence, was built in its original form during the 12th century in Romanesque style. It was modified in the 17th and 18th centuries, preserving only the original structure of the portal. The interior is in the form of a nave and two aisles, with high-quality stuccoes and a vault decorated with scenes from the saint's life (1748).
In the Gothic-style crypt is the colored stucco sarcophagus of Marinella Rufolo with a group of 14th-century wooden statues and other sculptures carved by her widower, Antonio Coppola, in 1332.