William I of Sicily destroyed the earlier cathedral in 1156. The present building was constructed between the late 12th and late 13th centuries, mostly in the last thirty years of the 12th, under Archbishop Rainaldo, reusing materials from earlier buildings. It was consecrated on October 4, 1292. The article names no medieval architect, and calls it an important example of Apulian Romanesque. The facade is simple, with three portals, a rose window and a lintel carved with monsters. The cupola shows Moorish motifs. The nave has three aisles divided by sixteen columns.
Archbishop Muzio Gaeta commissioned a Baroque refurbishment in the 18th century, designed by Domenico Antonio Vaccaro. The original Romanesque interior was restored in the 1950s.
The crypt holds the relics of Saint Sabinus. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Bari-Bitonto.
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