All Churches in Tuscany

The Basilica di Santo Spirito (Basilica of the Holy Spirit) is a Renaissance-style church in Florence, located in the Oltrarno district, in Piazza Santo Spirito.   SHORT HISTORY In 1250, Spinello Accolti and Omodeo di Guido donated to the Augustinian friar Aldobrandino a house and two vineyards in the Oltrarno area for the construction of a church, which was originally dedicated, in 1252, to the Virgin Mary, to the Holy Spirit and to all the Saints. In 1269, a community of Augustinian friars settled permanently in Florence, and began on this site the construction of a church dedicated to the Holy Spirit. Starting with 1397, the Municipality provided funds for the construction of a new basilica, but the work began only in 1434, when the project was entrusted to Filippo Brunelleschi. After the death of Brunelleschi in 1446, the construction site passed into the hands of his three disciples, Antonio Manetti, Giovanni da Gaiole and Salvi d’Andrea. In 1471, a serious fire destroyed many works of art in the church. Salvi d’Andrea built the dome between 1479 and 1481, and the internal facade between 1483 and 1487. Consecrated in 1481, the basilica was completed in 1487. Giuliano da Sangallo’s sacristy Read more [...]

The Basilica of the Santissima Annunziata is a church in Florence, located in the homonymous square, in the northern part of the historical center of the city.   SHORT HISTORY According to tradition, a small oratory dedicated to the Virgin was built on this area in 1081. Around 1233, the abandoned oratory was taken over by the Servants of Mary. In 1250, the Servants of Mary laid the first stone for the construction of a larger basilica. The church and the adjoining convent were dedicated to Santa Maria dei Servi, from the name of the religious order. In 1252, according to legend, the Servants of Mary commissioned a painter called Bartolomeo to paint a fresco of the Annunciation. Despite several attempts, the painter could not paint the face of the Virgin. One day, Bartolomeo fell asleep, and when he woke up, by a miracle, the painting was completed. The fresco became the object of great veneration and deep devotion of the Florentines. Towards the end of the 13th century, the floor of the church was redone and the choir stalls were carved by master Guglielmo of Calabria. In the first half of the 14th century, various chapels and altars were Read more [...]

The Church of San Salvatore in Ognissanti, or simply the Church of Ognissanti (Church of All Saints), is a church in Florence, located in the homonymous square.   SHORT HISTORY In 1239, the Humiliati arrived in Florence, and settled outside the city. In 1251, they started a church as part of a larger conventual complex. In 1571, the order of the Humiliati was suppressed at the behest of Cosimo I, and the Franciscans replaced them in the convent. Renovation work began immediately. Two cloisters were built, and the church was rededicated in 1582 to San Salvatore. In 1627, the interior of the church was restructured to a design by the architect Matteo Segaloni, commissioned by Ferdinando II de’ Medici. New altars, paintings and sculptures embellished the church. In 1637, the facade in Baroque style was completed by Matteo Nigetti. In 1872, the facade was completely redone in travertine.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE The facade of the church develops on three levels. The lower one has a large portal in the center, flanked by two niches. The portal has a lunette with the Coronation of the Virgin and Saints by Benedetto Buglioni. The second order has a niche in the center Read more [...]

The Cathedral of Santi Pietro e Donato is the Cathedral of Arezzo, located in Piazza del Duomo, on top of the San Pietro Hill.   SHORT HISTORY An important event, which contributed to the construction of the Cathedral, was the visit to Arezzo of Pope Gregorio X, which took place on December 20, 1275, on his return from the Council of Lyon. The Pope, seriously ill, died in Arezzo on January 10, leaving the sum of thirty gold florins for the building of the new Cathedral. In 1277, the decree of bishop Guglielmo degli Ubertini was promulgated, which stated the desire to build a church “to the honor of God, of the Blessed Virgin and of the patron Saint Donatus”. In 1289, the year of the Battle of Campaldino, the church, already consecrated, presented a fully built apse and the first two bays. In 1384, when Arezzo was annexed to the Tuscan state dominated by Florence, the construction of the Cathedral was stopped. The works were resumed only in 1471, and were completed in 1511. In the early 17th century, following the new rules of the Council of Trent, a modernization operation was carried out, with the renewal of the Read more [...]

The Church of Santa Maria della Pieve is a Romanesque church in Arezzo, located in Corso Italia, with the apse facing Piazza Grande.   SHORT HISTORY The first documented information about a church in this area dates back to the year 1008. However, the current structure was begun in the 12th century, thanks to the funds provided by the Municipality of Arezzo. In the 13th century, a new facade was built, while the high bell-tower was completed only in 1330. During the 16th century and later, the interior of the church was modified with stucco and Baroque-style decorations. In the 19th century, a renovation eliminated all the Baroque decorations, with the aim of restoring the church to its original Romanesque appearance.   ARCHITECTURE The facade overlooking Corso Italia, rebuilt in the 13th century, has three loggias supported by small columns. The two lower loggias are arched, and the third is surmounted by an architrave. The apse overlooking Piazza Grande is divided vertically into three superimposed orders – the first is made up of blind arches, while the second and the third of loggias. The church has four portals, three on the main facade, separated by blind arches, and one on Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Francesco is a Romanesque church in Siena, located in the homonymous square. Dedicated to Saint Francis of Assisi, the church is officiated by the Order of Friars Minor Conventual.   SHORT HISTORY The Franciscans arrived in Siena shortly after the death of Saint Francis in 1226. Between 1228 and 1255, a first church was erected on this site. The current church was built between 1326 and 1475 in Gothic style, enlarging the pre-existing church. In 1655, a fire damaged the church, leaving it in ruins for over two centuries. Between 1763 and 1765, the current bell tower was built, based on a project by Paolo Posi. In 1855, following the suppression of religious orders carried out by Napoleon, the convent became the property of the Archdiocese of Siena, which made it the seat of the Archiepiscopal Seminary. The church was restored in Neo-Gothic style at the end of the 19th century. The works were entrusted to Giuseppe Partini for the interior, and to Vittorio Mariani and Gaetano Ceccarelli for the exterior. In 1968, the ancient Convent adjacent to the Basilica was purchased by the University of Siena, where the Department of Economics, Politics and Statistics is Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Domenico, also known as Basilica Cateriniana, is a Gothic church in Siena, located in Piazza San Domenico. The church contains the head-relic of Saint Catherine of Siena, placed in a splendid Renaissance chapel.   SHORT HISTORY The Dominicans arrived in Siena in 1220, a year before the death of their founder, Dominic de Guzmán. In 1225, they received a piece of land on the Camporegio Hill, and built a church there between 1226 and 1265. In the 14th century, the complex was enlarged in Gothic style, and took its current appearance. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the church underwent numerous alterations in Baroque style, such as the reconstruction of the side altars. After the earthquake of 1798, the bell tower, already in ruins, was truncated to its present level, and equipped with the current crenellated crowning. The last intervention dates back to 1941, when the Baroque decorations were removed, the ancient Gothic forms were partially restored, and the stained glass windows with the Stories of Saint Catherine by Bruno Cassinari were added.   ARCHITECTURE The basilica has a simple but massive appearance, typical of the mendicant orders. Suggestive is the view of the rear side Read more [...]

The Church of San Salvatore al Monte is a Catholic church in Florence, located on the hill known as Monte delle Croci, not far from the Basilica of San Miniato al Monte.   SHORT HISTORY At the beginning of the 15th century, on this site was a Franciscan chapel. The chapel was enlarged in the first half of the century, and the works were completed around 1442. In the last decades of the 15th century, the church was renovated by the architect Simone del Pollaiolo, also known as Il Cronaca, by the will of the rich merchant Castello Quaratesi. The renovation started in 1499, and was completed in 1504. During the Siege of 1529, the church was badly damaged, and throughout the 16th century was left in a state of neglect. In 1665, the friars definitively left San Salvatore al Monte. In 1875, Piazzale Michelangelo was built nearby.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE The facade of the church, very simple and framed by the typical Tuscan cypresses, has plastered surfaces interrupted only by the portal and the gable windows. Inside, the church has a single nave with five chapels on each side, marked by a double order of stone pilasters in Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Lorenzo is a beautiful church in Florence, located in the historical center of the city, in Piazza di San Lorenzo.   SHORT HISTORY According to tradition, the church was built during the 4th century outside the walls of the ancient city. In 393, it was consecrated to the martyr Lawrence, in the presence of Saint Ambrose and Saint Zenobius. For the next 300 years, San Lorenzo was the Cathedral of Florence, before giving up the status to the Church of Santa Reparata, where the remains of San Zanobi, the first bishop of Florence, were solemnly transferred. In 1059, the church was enlarged and rededicated, on the initiative of the bishop Gherardo di Borgogna, when he became pope under the name of Niccolò II. In 1418, the abbot Matteo Dolfini obtained permission to demolish some houses to enlarge the transept of the church. Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici, a wealthy banker, financed the construction and named Filippo Brunelleschi to direct the works. The sacristy was finished in 1428, but then the works were stopped. After 1441, Cosimo de’ Medici, Giovanni’s son, assumed the entire burden of the construction, and the direction of the works passed to Michelozzo, Read more [...]

The Church of San Paolo a Ripa d’Arno (Saint Paul on the Bank of the Arno), is a Romanesque-style church in Pisa, located on the Lungarno Sidney Sonnino, in the homonymous square.   SHORT HISTORY The church was built around the year 925, and is attested in documents dating back to 1032. The associated convent was documented since 1147. The church and the monastery belonged to the Benedictine monks until 1092, when it was given to the Vallumbrosan monks. In the mid-12th century, it was enlarged in similar forms to the contemporary Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta. Later, the church and the monastery were entrusted to the cardinal Landolfo Marramauro and, in the 16th century, it was assigned to the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen. After the suppression of the order, the church became a parish. In the 19th century, several restorations were made, but the building suffered some damage during the Second World War and was therefore restored again between 1949 and 1952. Just as a result of the post-war interventions, most of the buildings adjacent to the church were demolished. In 2012, it was closed due to precarious conditions. Restoration started in October 2016, thanks to Read more [...]

The Church of Santa Maria della Spina is a small Gothic church in Pisa, located on the southern bank of the river Arno. The title della Spina (of the Thorn) comes from a thorn of the crown placed on Christ during his Crucifixion, which was brought to the church in 1333, but is kept in the Church of Santa Chiara since the 19th century.   SHORT HISTORY The church was built in 1230 by the Gualandi family, and it was originally called Santa Maria di Pontenovo, because of a nearby bridge across the Arno River that connected Via Sant’Antonio to Via Santa Maria, collapsed in the 15th century. Between 1323 and 1376, enlargement works were made, probably under the direction of the architect Lupo di Francesco. Starting with the 5th decade of the 15th century, the works were supervised by the architect Andrea Pisano and his son, Nino. After the unification of Italy, the city council and a commission formed by members of the Academy of Fine Arts decided to dismantle and rebuild the church on a higher ground. The works, led by the architect Vincenzo Micheli, started in 1871 and were completed in 1875. This intervention moved the building Read more [...]

The Church of Santo Stefano dei Cavalieri is a church dedicated to Saint Stephen, first martyr of Christianity, located in the historical center of Pisa, in Piazza dei Cavalieri, near the beautiful Palazzo della Carovana.   SHORT HISTORY The first stone of the church was laid on April 17, 1565, by Cosimo I de’ Medici. The church was built for the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen, founded by the Grand Duke to combat Saracen piracy in the Mediterranean. Designed by Giorgio Vasari, with the works being supervised by David Fortini, the church was built on the site of the old Church of San Sebastiano alle Fabbriche Maggiori, documented since 1074. The construction was completed in August 1567, and the church was consecrated on December 1569. The bell tower, added between 1570 and 1572, was erected by Giovanni Fancelli based on a design by Vasari. In the following century, the church was decorated with most of the paintings that are still on display, painted by the greatest Florentine masters of the 17th century. The altar and the nave were designed by Pier Francesco Silvani. Between 1683 and 1691, the two side bodies were built, used as dressing rooms and Read more [...]

The Church of San Michele in Foro is a church in Romanesque style, located in the homonymous square, Piazza San Michele, in Lucca.   SHORT HISTORY In the 8th century, in the middle of the ancient Roman forum, a church dedicated to San Michele (Archangel Michael) was built, together with a monastery and a hospital. Around 1070, by the will of Pope Alessandro II, the reconstruction of the church began, but the structure was completed only in the 14th century. At the beginning of the 13th century, the works were carried out by the architect Guidetto. The new church had three naves, delimited by columns with Corinthian capitals, and an apse. The bell-tower was built around the same time, but was later shortened by Giovanni dell’Agnello, Doge of Pisa between 1364 and 1368, because the sound of its bells could be heard from Pisa. During the Middle Ages, the access to the church was made by crossing a wooden bridge, called Ponte al Foro, which passed over a small canal known as Fossa Natali.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE San Michele in Foro is a church with a Latin cross plan, built in Romanesque style. The facade is adorned with four Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Frediano is a Romanesque church in Lucca, located in the homonymous square, Piazza San Frediano. Every year, on the evening of September 13, the candlelit procession of Luminara di Santa Croce, part of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, starts here.   SHORT HISTORY An ancient church was built on this site in the 6th century, and was dedicated to the three holy Levites – Vincenzo, Stefano and Lorenzo. The construction of the church is owed to San Frediano, an Irish pilgrim who was bishop of Lucca between 560 and 588. During the Longobard domination, the church was enlarged. At the end of the 8th century, a crypt was built for the body of San Frediano. In 1112, the rebuilding of the church began, and the structure was completed and consecrated in 1147 by Pope Eugene III. The project included a church with three naves and an apse, with the facade facing east, unlike the Augustinian rule that oriented it to the west. In the 12th century, the church was lower than we see today. The raising of the central nave and the construction of the wooden ceiling dates back to the 13th Read more [...]

The Church of San Giovanni and Santa Reparata is a church located in Piazza San Giovanni, in Lucca, about 100 meters away from the Cathedral of San Martino, and about the same distance from Piazza Napoleone and the Ducal Palace.   SHORT HISTORY The church was built in the 5th century on the site of a Roman settlement, and was the Cathedral of Lucca until the 8th century, when the role passed to the nearby Church of San Martino. However, after the change, the baptismal font was kept in the Church of Saints Giovanni and Reparata, and the two holy places remained inseparably linked. In the 12th century, a new edifice replaced the old church. The new church, with three naves supported by columns with composite capitals, with apse and transept, wasn’t so different from the early Christian structure. The baptistery was also rebuilt in the 12th century, but the most important renovation works were made in 1393, when it was covered with an ogival dome. Starting with the end of the 16th century and throughout the first two decades of the following century, a new renovation was carried out. During this time, the new facade was built, reusing for Read more [...]

The Church of San Giuseppe is a Catholic church in Lucca, located in Piazza Antelminelli, not far from the Cathedral of San Martino.   SHORT HISTORY The Church of San Giuseppe is, actually, the small oratory of the convent of the Jesuit nuns founded in 1518 in Lucca, and the only part of this ancient structure still standing.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE The church has the typical oratory structure, with two grilled windows on either side of the central portal. The lunette of the portal is decorated with glazed terracotta from the second half of the 16th century, depicting the Madonna between Saints Joseph and Jerome. The interior of the church, with a single nave and a cross vault, underwent a renovation in the mid-17th century, and on this occasion was enriched with carved and gilded wood: a choir leaning against the counter-facade, two side altars, and the high altar, which has in the center the late 16th-century painting with Saints Paul, Joseph and Girolamo, work of Lorenzo Zacchia.   HOW TO GET THERE The Church of San Giuseppe is located about 700 meters away from the Lucca railway station. The closest bus stop is Della Rossa, located about 220 Read more [...]

The Church of San Francesco is a Catholic church in Lucca, located in the homonymous square. Today, the church is deconsecrated and used as a venue for various events.   SHORT HISTORY The presence of the Franciscans in Lucca is attested as early as 1228. The church, built at their behest, was completed in 1430. After a period of neglect, the church became the property of the Municipality of Lucca in 1901, and was reopened for worship in 1910. The facade was completed only at the beginning of the 20th century. In 2003, the Franciscan friars left the convent and the entire complex was purchased by the Municipality of Lucca. In 2010, after some works on the adjacent buildings damaged the complex, the church was bought by Cassa di Risparmio di Lucca Foundation. The church underwent a major restoration between 2011 and 2013.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE The facade of the church, completed in 1930, has wider bands of white limestone alternating with narrower bands of gray limestone. The lower part of the facade presents, in the center, the portal with a painted lunette and, on the sides, two blind round arches with sepulchres. In the upper part, there is Read more [...]

The Church of Santa Maria Forisportam, also known as the Church of Santa Maria Bianca, is a church located in the homonymous square, in Lucca. Forisportam comes from the Latin foris portam, which means outside the gate, due to the location of a first church built on this site during the Roman times, outside the ancient walls of the city. Bianca (white) comes from the white marble facade of the church.   SHORT HISTORY In the 12th century, the church was rebuilt and incorporated within the medieval walls of Lucca. The religious building was modeled after the Cathedral of Pisa. The bell tower was built in 1619, and other restoration works were carried out during the 18th and 19th centuries. From 1512 until the Napoleonic suppression, the church was affiliated with the Canonici Regolari of San Salvatore of Bologna. In 1819, the Canonici returned, and in 1823 they fused with the Canonici Regolari Lateranensi into a single order.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE On the facade of the church, the first order is articulated by blind arcades supported by semi-columns of Pisan imitation. Also on the facade, we can find three portals with architraves decorated with classical motifs. The second order Read more [...]

The Church of Santa Cristina is a church located on the southern bank of the Arno River, on the Lungarno Gambacorti, in Pisa, a few meters away from Palazzo Blu.   SHORT HISTORY The church is documented since the 8th century, but the external apsidal structures are attributed to the 10th century. The church was destroyed by a flood in 1115, and rebuilt in 1118. Between the 13th and 16th centuries, it was the property of the Canonici del Duomo. The Count Luigi Archinto, member of a prominent Milanese family, moved to Pisa in the late 18th century. In 1814, he acquired the Agnello Palace adjacent to the church. The Count Archinto commissioned the reconstruction of the church, which was in a very poor conservation. The church was restored in its current form in 1816 on a project by Francesco Riccetti, when the bell-tower was also built. In 1854, according to the project of Lanfranco Mei regarding the enlargement of the Lungarno Gambacorti, the position of the church was in a strong contrast with the harmony of the nearby buildings. Saved by the proposal of demolition, it was decided to rectify the rectory overlooking the river. The rectification also regularized Read more [...]

The Church of San Vito and San Ranieri, popularly known as the Church of San Vito, is a church located on Lungarno Ranieri Simonelli, in Pisa. According to tradition, Saint Rainerius, the patron saint of the city, died in the church in 1160.   SHORT HISTORY Documented since 1051, the church was surrounded by a Benedictine monastery in 1069. At the beginning of the 15th century, the whole complex passed to the nuns of Santa Chiara. A century later, the church was damaged during the Florentine siege of the city. In 1542, Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, to realize Giardino dei Semplici, now the Botanical Garden of Pisa, needed the area of the old Republican Arsenal and the adjacent territory. Subsequently, to build the new shipyard, he purchased the entire territory of the Convent of San Vito and had a large part of the building demolished. The ancient church was seriously damaged during the bombings of the Second World War. Therefore, after the war, it was rebuilt in similar forms to those of the 18th century.   ARCHITECTURE The church, crammed between two other buildings, has a simple plastered facade, with a portal surmounted by an arched Read more [...]

The Church of San Francesco is a 13th-century church, located in Piazza San Francesco, in Pisa.   SHORT HISTORY Mentioned for the first time in a document from 1233, the church was rebuilt starting with 1261 at the behest of the archbishop Federico Visconti. Between 1265 and 1270, the works were directed by Giovanni di Simone. During this time, the slender bell-tower was also built. The new church included many private chapels belonging to noble Pisan families. The chapels, which preserve ancient tombs, were built and adorned by the Pisan families, who exercised the right of patronage on the church, while the Franciscan monks only limited themselves to the administration of the religious building. Two new cloisters and the San Bernardino Chapel were added in the 15th century. The marble facade dates back to 1603, and the interior was renovated in the same 17th century. In 1863, following a law of December 1861, the church and convent were deconsecrated and converted to military barracks. All the objects, paintings and ornaments were therefore withdrawn by the families, who exercised their patronage rights. On July 7, 1866, the church was transformed into a warehouse. On May 22, 1893, the Ministry of Education Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Domenico is a Gothic church in Arezzo, located in the homonymous square, in the northern part of the historical center of the city.   SHORT HISTORY The church was built in Romanesque style starting with 1275, and completed in the 14th century. Important changes inside the church were made in the second part of the 16th century, when new altars were added and the frescoed walls were painted white. In 1782, after the reform of religious orders in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the church was abandoned until the beginning of the 20th century. During the restoration works from the 1920s, the altars added in the 16th century were removed, and the frescoes of the 13th and 14th centuries were recovered. The construction of the porch in front of the entrance was completed in 1936 on a project by Giuseppe Castellucci. The porch was built to protect the fresco in the lunette above the entrance door.   ARCHITECTURE The asymmetrical facade, in masonry, includes a bell-gable with two bells. The interior of the church, with a single nave and a trussed roof, takes light from 12 single-light windows. As you approach the apse, the distance between Read more [...]

The Church of Sant’Agostino is a church in Arezzo, dedicated to Saint Augustine, located in the homonymous square.   SHORT HISTORY The mendicant Order of Hermits of Saint Augustine was approved in 1256 by Pope Alexander IV. One year later, the Augustinian friars laid the first stone for the construction of their church in Arezzo. The first church was small in size, and for this reason, in 1330, it was decided to build a larger church. The new church, with three naves, was completed in 1341. However, the religious complex, which also included a large convent, remained incomplete until the 15th century. Only in 1491, the works were resumed and all the structures were finished. Between the end of the 14th century and the early 16th century, the church was embellished with splendid cycles of frescoes and paintings. All the works disappeared between 1761 and 1766, when the interior of the church was transformed in Baroque and Rococo styles, on a project by Filippo Giustini. The facade and the quadrangular bell-tower, both dating back to the 15th century, were spared by the transformation. The tip of the bell-tower was damaged by lightning in 1825, and was rebuilt in the 1920s. Read more [...]

The Church of Santi Lorentino e Pergentino is a small church in Arezzo, located along the former ancient Roman road which connected Chiusi to Florence.   SHORT HISTORY Some historians cite the ancient Passion of Saints Lorentino and Pergentino, dating back to the 6th century, to identify the church as the place of burial of two Christian martyrs, Lorentino and Pergentino, beheaded on June 3, 250, by emperor Decius. Little information exists regarding what happened with the church between the burial of the martyrs and the Middle Ages. A document from 1135 shows that the church belonged to the Benedictine monastery of Saints Flora and Lucilla. In the year 1204, the parish was given to the monks of Camaldoli, to compensate the sale of the Church of San Pier Piccolo. They took care of the church from 1252 until the 16th century. In 1663, it seems that, of the entire complex, only the church remained. Later, the church was abandoned and reduced to a barn. This process of continuous decay up to the loss of the entire western part, that of the facade, and the nearby construction of numerous huts and buildings of little value, continued until 1970, when the Read more [...]

The Basilica of San Miniato al Monte is a Romanesque church in Florence, located on one of the highest points in the city, in Via delle Porte Sante. San Miniato (Saint Minias) was an Armenian soldier, who was killed in the year 250 AD by the Roman soldiers of Emperor Decius, because he converted to Christianity, and Christians were persecuted at that time. He is considered the first martyr of the city and his remains are supposedly kept today in the crypt of San Miniato al Monte.   SHORT HISTORY The oldest historical evidence of a church dedicated to San Miniato dates back to the year 783. The building was neglected and unsafe, and the Florentine bishop Ildebrando began to build a new one on April 27, 1018. The church was finished two hundred years later, in the 13th century. In 1373, the Olivetan monks arrived in Florence, called by the Pope Gregorio XI, and settled in the monastery, where you can still find them today. The Chapel dedicated to the Cardinal Giacomo di Coimbra (Cardinal of Portugal) was built between 1461 and 1466 by Antonio Manetti and finished by Antonio Rossellino, after his death. During the 16th century, with Read more [...]

The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella is a wonderful Dominican church located in Piazza di Santa Maria Novella, in the beautiful city of Florence.   SHORT HISTORY In 1219, twelve Dominicans arrived in Florence from Bologna, led by Fra’ Giovanni. In 1221, they obtained the small Church of Santa Maria delle Vigne, so called for the surrounding agricultural land. In 1242, the Dominicans decided to start work on a new and larger church. On October 18, 1279, during the feast of San Luca, the laying of the first stone was celebrated, with the blessing of Cardinal Latino Malabranca Orsini. The construction was completed around the middle of the 14th century, but the church was consecrated only in 1420, by Pope Martino V. Leon Battista Alberti designed the large central portal and the upper part of the facade, in white and dark green marble, which was completed in 1470. After the Council of Trent, between 1565 and 1571, the interior of the church was redesigned by Giorgio Vasari, with the removal of the choir enclosure and the reconstruction of the side altars, which led to the shortening of the Gothic windows. Between 1575 and 1577, the Gaddi Chapel (Cappella Gaddi) was Read more [...]