|
|||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Piazza San Lorenzo San Lorenzo Basilica was begun by Brunelleschi in 1425 and is regarded as one of the city's purest Renaissance churches. The eastern façade is especially interesting, as it is completely bare of decoration revealing the antique brickwork. It was the Medici family's parish church, and many of the members of the family are buried here. Donatello designed the bronze pulpits, and he too is buried in one of the chapels. The Laurenziana Library features a sublime staircase by Michelangelo. The New Sacristy was also designed by Michelangelo and contains his Night & Day, Dawn & Dusk sculptures. Adjacent to the basilica are atmospheric palazzos, with interior courtyards glimpsed through ancient wooden gates, and the especially bustling central where you can bargain your way to acquiring woollen and leather goods. Orsanmichele The church of Orsanmichele can be found in Via dei Calzaiuoli. It stands three storeys high built in in 1304 as a merchants' loggia. In 1380 the loggia was walled in and dedicated exclusively to religious functions. The exterior sculpture of John the Baptist by Ghiberti is the first life-size bronze statue of the Renaissance and is found on the east side. On the north side is Donatello's St George while on the west side St Matthew and St Stephen by Ghiberti. The rectangular interior is dominated by the vast tabernacle by Orcagna that is carved with delicate reliefs and studded with coloured marble and glass. It frames a Madonna painted in 1347 by Bernardo Daddi as a replacement for a miraculous image of the Virgin destroyed by the 1304 fire, whose powers this picture is said to have inherited. Bargello Museum The Bargello Museum in the fortress-like Palazzo del Bargello on Via del Proconsolo, halfway between the duomo and the Palazzo Vecchio houses the most comprehensive range of medieval and Renaissance sculpture in Italy with the most notable works being Michelangelo's drunken Bacchus and Donatello's David. Dante's House Nearby the Bargello museum is Dante's House, a small museum that examines the life of the creator of Italian literary language. |