Santo Spirito di Firenze

Santo Spirito Di Firenze

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Santo Spirito di Firenze

The Basilica of Santa Maria del Santo Spirito ("St. Mary of the Holy Spirit") is one of the main churches in Florence

Florence

Florence is the Capital city of the Italy Regions of Italy of Tuscany and of the provinces of Italy Province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of 364,779 ....
, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
. Usually referred to simply as Santo Spirito, it is located in the Oltrarno

Oltrarno

The Oltrarno is a quarter of Florence, Italy. The name means beyond the Arno; it is located south of the River Arno. It contains part of the historic center of Florence and many notable sites such as the church Santo Spirito di Firenze, Palazzo Pitti, Belvedere , and Piazzale Michelangelo....
quarter, facing the square with the same name. The building on the interior is one of the pre-eminent examples of Renaissance architecture

Renaissance architecture

Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, in which there was a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome thought and material culture....
.

current church was constructed over the pre-existing ruins of an Augustinian convent from the 13th century, destroyed by a fire in 1471.

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The Basilica of Santa Maria del Santo Spirito ("St. Mary of the Holy Spirit") is one of the main churches in Florence

Florence

Italy

Oltrarno

Renaissance architecture

History

The current church was constructed over the pre-existing ruins of an Augustinian convent from the 13th century, destroyed by a fire in 1471. Filippo Brunelleschi

Filippo Brunelleschi

Filippo Brunelleschi was one of the foremost architects and engineers of the Italian Renaissance. All of his principal works are in Florence, Italy....
began designs for the new building as early as 1428. After his death in 1446, the works were carried on by his followers Antonio Manetti

Antonio Manetti

Antonio Manetti was an Italian mathematician and architect from Florence.He is particularly noted for his investigations into the site, shape and size of Dante's Divine Comedy....
, Giovanni da Gaiole, and Salvi d'Andrea; the latter was also responsible for the construction of the cupola.

Unlike S. Lorenzo

Basilica di San Lorenzo di Firenze

The Basilica di San Lorenzo is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city?s main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III....
, where Brunelleschi’s ideas were thwarted, here, his ideas were carried through with some degree of fidelity, at least in the ground plan and up to the level of the arcades

Arcade (architecture)

An arcade is a passage or walkway covered over by a succession of arches or Vault supported by columns. In a Gothic architecture cathedral the arcade is the lowest part of the wall of the nave, supporting the triforium and the clerestory....
. The Latin cross plan is so designed to maximize the legibility of the grid. The contrast between nave

Nave

In Romanesque architecture and Gothic architecture Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and Church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar....
and transept

Transept

Full descriptions of the elements of a Gothic floorplan are found at the entry Cathedral diagram.'For the periodical go to The Transept....
that caused such difficulty at S. Lorenzo was here also avoided. The side chapels, in the form of niche

Niche (architecture)

The niche is ouner place in classical architecture is an exedra or an apse that has been reduced in size, retaining the half-dome heading usual for an apse....
s all the same size (forty in all), run along the entire perimeter of the space.

Brunelleschi's facade

Facade

A facade or fa?ade is generally one side of the exterior of a building, especially the front, but also sometimes the sides and rear. The Word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
was never built and left blank. In 1489, a sacristy

Sacristy

A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building ....
was built to the left of the building and a door was opened up in a chapel to make the connection to the church. Designed by Simone del Pollaiolo

Simone del Pollaiolo

Simone del Pollaiolo is a well known Florentine architect who was commonly known as Il Cronaca .Pollaiolo was born in Florence, he had two famous brothers Antonio Benci and Piero Benci who had the nickname Pollaiuolo or Pollaiolo ....
, it has an octagonal plan.

A Baroque

Baroque

In the the arts, the Baroque was a Western cultural Epoch , starting roughly at the beginning of the 17th century in Rome, Italy. It was exemplified by drama and grandeur in Baroque sculpture, Baroque painting, literature, Baroque dance, and Baroque music....
baldachin

Baldachin

A baldachin, or baldaquin , is a canopy of state over an altar or throne. It had its beginnings as a cloth canopy, but in other cases it is a sturdy, permanent Architecture feature, particularly over high altars in cathedrals, where such a structure may be called a ciborium when it is sufficiently architectural in...
with polychrome marbles was added by Giovanni Battista Caccini

Giovanni Battista Caccini

Giovanni Battista Caccini was an Italy sculptor from Florence, who worked in a Classicism style in the later phase of Mannerism. He was born at Montopoli in Val d'Arno between Florence and Pisa; his training was with the sculptor-architect Giovanni Antonio Dosio, known for his accurate drawings of Roman antiquities, and Caccini's numerous in...
and Gherardo Silvani

Gherardo Silvani

Gherardo Silvani was an Italy architect and sculptor, active mainly in Florence and other sites in Tuscany during the Baroque period.His son Pierfrancesco Silvani also became an architect....
) over the high altar, in 1601. The church remained undecorated until the 18th century, when the walls were plastered. The inner façade is by Salvi d'Andrea, and has still the original glass window with the Pentecost designed by Pietro Perugino

Pietro Perugino

Pietro Perugino was the leading Painting of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance....
. The bell tower (1503) was designed by Baccio d'Agnolo

Baccio D'Agnolo

Baccio D'Agnolo, born Bartolomeo Baglioni , was an Italy woodcarver, sculpture and architect from Florence."Baccio"'is an abbreviation of Bartolomeo, and "d'Agnolo" refers to Angelo, his father's name....
.

The exterior of the building was restored in 1977-78.

Chapel frescoes

The church has 38 side chapels (two chapels having been given over to doors), which contain a noteworthy amount of artworks. The most significant is the Bini-Capponi Chapel, housing the St. Monica Establishing the Rule of the Augustinian Nuns painting by Francesco Botticini

Francesco Botticini

Francesco di Giovanni Botticini was an Italy Early Renaissance painter. He studied under Cosimo Rosselli and Andrea del Verrocchio. He was born in Florence in 1446 and is mostly remembered for his painting entitled "Assumption of the Virgin"; he died in 1498 ....
. The Corbinelli chapels works are by Andrea Sansovino

Andrea Sansovino

Andrea dal Monte Sansovino or Andrea Contucci del Monte San Savino was an Italy sculpture active during the High Renaissance. His pupils include Jacopo Sansovino ....
, Cosimo Rosselli

Cosimo Rosselli

Cosimo Rosselli was an Italy painter of the Quattrocento, active mainly in his birthplace of Florence....
and Donnino and Agnolo del Mazziere.

In the chapels of the transept are frescoes by Filippino Lippi

Filippino Lippi

Filippino Lippi was a well-known painter working during the High Renaissance in Florence, Italy....
. Also in the transept is a choir from which the Frescobaldi

Frescobaldi

The Frescobaldi Family is a prominent Florentine family that has been involved in the political, sociological and economic history of the Tuscany region since the Middle Ages....
Marquisses could participate to the rites without being seen by the crowd.

The sacristy, accessed through a doorway in what would have been the left sixth chapel preceded by a monumental vestibule by Simone del Pollaiolo

Simone del Pollaiolo

Giuliano da Sangallo

Giuliano da Sangallo was an Italy sculptor, architect and military engineer active during the Italian Renaissance.He was born in Florence. His father Francesco Giamberti was a woodworker and architect, much employed by Cosimo de Medici, and his brother Antonio da Sangallo the Elder and nephew Antonio da Sangallo the Younger were architec...
in 1489, and has an octagonal plan. It is home to a devotional painting of St. Fiacre curing the sick (1597) by Alessandro Allori

Alessandro Allori

Alessandro di Cristofano di Lorenzo del Bronzino Allori was an Italy portrait Painting of the late Mannerism Florence school.Born in Florence, in 1540, after the death of his father, he was brought up and trained in art by a close friend, often referred to as his 'uncle', the mannerist painter Agnolo Bronzino, whose name he sometimes ass...
(1596) commissioned by Christine of Lorraine, Grand Duke Ferdinando I de' Medici's wife.

Chapels of Santo Spirito

Side	Chapel	Artworks
R	1 (nave near facade)	Disputa by Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi was an Italy painter active in Florence in a Mannerism style. He was pupil of Andrea del Sarto and assisted Pontormo with his frescoes at Villa Medici at Careggi in 1536....
R	2	Copy of Michelangelo’s Pietà (1549) by Nanni di Baccio Bigio Nanni di Baccio Bigio Nanni di Baccio Bigio, a pseudonym of Giovanni Lippi , was an Italian architect of the 16th century.He worked primarily in Rome where he designed the Palazzo Salviati alla Lungara in the style of Giuliano da Sangallo, he directed the reconstruction of the Castel Sant'Angelo, and built the Porta del Popolo....
R	3	St. Niccolò da Tolentino by Nanni Unghero; flanking angels by Franciabigio Franciabigio Franciabigio , was an italy Painting of the Florentine Renaissance. His true name may have been Francesco di Cristofano, however he also is referred to as either Marcantonio Franciabigio or Francia Bigio....
R	4	Expulsion of the Money Changers from Temple (1572) by Giovanni Stradano
R	5	Coronation of the Virgin (c. 1694) by Alessandro Gherardini Alessandro Gherardini Alessandro Gherardini was an Italy painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Florence.He was the pupil of the painter Alessandro Rossi....
R	6	Martyrdom of St. Stephen (1602) by Domenico Passignano Domenico Passignano Domenico Passignano was an Italy painter of a late-Renaissance or Contra-Mannerism style that emerged in Florence towards the end of the 16th century....
R	7	Tobias and Angel (1698) by Giovanni Baratta Giovanni Baratta Giovanni Baratta was an Italy sculptor of the Baroque period. Born in Carrara, but active in Florence and Livorno. He was a pupil of Giovanni Battista Foggini....
R	9 (transept)	Transfiguration by Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi was an Italy painter active in Florence in a Mannerism style. He was pupil of Andrea del Sarto and assisted Pontormo with his frescoes at Villa Medici at Careggi in 1536....
R	10 (transept)	Madonna del Soccorso (15th century)
R	11 (transept)	Altar by Bernardo Buontalenti Bernardo Buontalenti Bernardo Buontalenti, byname of Bernardo Delle Girandole was an Italy stage designer, architect, theatrical designer, military engineer and artist....
R	12 (transept)	Madonna and Child with Saints and Nerli Family Donors (1488) by Filippino Lippi Filippino Lippi Filippino Lippi was a well-known painter working during the High Renaissance in Florence, Italy....
R	13 (transept)	Copy of Perugino’s Pietro Perugino Pietro Perugino was the leading Painting of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance.... Apparition of the Virgin to St. Bernard by Felice Ficherelli Felice Ficherelli Felice Ficherelli was an Italy painter of the Baroque period, active mainly in Tuscany. Born in San Gimignano, he was the pupil of the painter Jacopo da Empoli....
R	14	Marble sarcophagus (c. 1457) by Antonio Rossellino Antonio Rossellino Antonio Gamberelli , nicknamed Antonio Rossellino for the colour of his hair, was an Italy sculptor. His older brother, from whom he received his formal training, was the painter Bernardo Rossellino....
R	15 (apse)	Madonna with SS. John Evangelist & Jerome (early 16th century)
R	16 (apse)	Madonna with child & 4 saints (c. 1340) by Maso di Banco Maso di Banco Maso di Banco was an Italian painter of the 14th century, who worked in Florence, Italy. His style was influenced by Giotto di Bondone.His fresco of a particular judgment is in the Bardi family tomb, in a chapel of the Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze....
L	18 (apse)	Martyrdom of the ten thousand (1574) by Alessandro Allori Alessandro Allori Alessandro di Cristofano di Lorenzo del Bronzino Allori was an Italy portrait Painting of the late Mannerism Florence school.Born in Florence, in 1540, after the death of his father, he was brought up and trained in art by a close friend, often referred to as his 'uncle', the mannerist painter Agnolo Bronzino, whose name he sometimes ass... with altarpiece of St. Lucy with two angels (c. 1460) attributed to Neri di Bicci Neri di Bicci Neri di Bicci was an Italy painter of the Renaissance. A prolific painter of mainly religious themes, he was active mainly in Florence and in the medium of tempera....
L	1 (nave)	Resurrection by Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi Pier Francesco Foschi was an Italy painter active in Florence in a Mannerism style. He was pupil of Andrea del Sarto and assisted Pontormo with his frescoes at Villa Medici at Careggi in 1536....
L	2	Copy of Michelangelo’s Christ (1579) by Taddeo Landini Taddeo Landini Taddeo Landini was an Italy sculptor and architect of the Renaissance period, active mainly in Florence and Rome. He was born in Florence and died in Rome....
L	5	Madonna, St. Anne, and other saints by Michele Tosini Michele Tosini Michele Tosini was an Italy painter of the Renaissance and Mannerist period, who worked in Florence.He apprenticed initially with Lorenzo di Credi and Antonio del Ceraiolo, but then moved into the studio of Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, from whom he acquired the name Michele di Ridolfi or Michele Ghirlandaio....
L	8	Madonna enthroned with SS Lawrence, Giovanni Gualberto, Catherine, & Bernard by follower of Fra Bartolomeo
L	9 (transept)	Way to Calvary by Michele Tosini Michele Tosini Michele Tosini was an Italy painter of the Renaissance and Mannerist period, who worked in Florence.He apprenticed initially with Lorenzo di Credi and Antonio del Ceraiolo, but then moved into the studio of Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, from whom he acquired the name Michele di Ridolfi or Michele Ghirlandaio.... ; window Doubting Thomas attributed to Bartolomeo di Giovanni Bartolomeo di Giovanni Bartolomeo di Giovanni, also known as Bartolommeo di Giovanni and as Alunno di Domenico, was an early Renaissance painting Italian painter of the Florentine School who was active from about 1480 until his death in 1501....
L	10 (transept)	Madonna Enthroned with Saints (1505) by Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo was a Florence painter of the early-Renaissance.His real name was Raffaello Capponi; Del Garbo was a nickname, bestowed upon him seemingly from the graceful nicety of his earlier works.... with altarpiece of St. Lawrence distributing alms by Jacopo del Sellaio
L	11 (transept)	Madonna Enthroned with Angels and Saints Bartholemew and Nicholas by Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo was a Florence painter of the early-Renaissance.His real name was Raffaello Capponi; Del Garbo was a nickname, bestowed upon him seemingly from the graceful nicety of his earlier works....
L	12 (transept)	Trinity adored by Saints Catherine and Mary Magdalene (c. 1485) by Francesco Granacci Francesco Granacci Francesco Granacci was an Italy painter of the Renaissance.Born at Villamagna di Volterra, he trained in Florence in the studio of Domenico Ghirlandaio, and was employed painting frescoes for San Marco di Firenze on commission of Lorenzo de'Medici....
L	13 (transept)	Corbinelli altar (1492) by Andrea Sansovino Andrea Sansovino Andrea dal Monte Sansovino or Andrea Contucci del Monte San Savino was an Italy sculpture active during the High Renaissance. His pupils include Jacopo Sansovino ....
L	14 (transept)	Madonna Enthroned and Child with Saints (1482) by Cosimo Rosselli, altarpiece of Doubting Thomas attributed to Neri di Bicci Neri di Bicci Neri di Bicci was an Italy painter of the Renaissance. A prolific painter of mainly religious themes, he was active mainly in Florence and in the medium of tempera....
L	15 (transept)	St. Monica Establishes the Rule of Augustinian Nuns (1483) attributed to Botticini
L	16 (transept)	Madonna and Child and Saints attributed to Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo Raffaellino del Garbo was a Florence painter of the early-Renaissance.His real name was Raffaello Capponi; Del Garbo was a nickname, bestowed upon him seemingly from the graceful nicety of his earlier works....
L	15 (apse)	Nativity by follower of Ghirlandaio
L	16 (apse)	Anunciation (late 15th century)
L	18 (apse)	Christ and the Adultress (1577) by Alessandro Allori Alessandro Allori Alessandro di Cristofano di Lorenzo del Bronzino Allori was an Italy portrait Painting of the late Mannerism Florence school.Born in Florence, in 1540, after the death of his father, he was brought up and trained in art by a close friend, often referred to as his 'uncle', the mannerist painter Agnolo Bronzino, whose name he sometimes ass...

Michelangelo's Crucifix

Michelangelo Buonarroti was guest of the convent when he was seventeen years old, after the death of his protector Lorenzo de' Medici

Lorenzo de' Medici

Lorenzo de' Medici was an Italy statesman and de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic during the Italian Renaissance. Known as Lorenzo the Magnificent by contemporary Florentines, he was a diplomat, politician and patron of scholars, artists, and poets....
. Here he could make anatomical studies on the corpses coming from the convent's hospital; in exchange, he sculpted a wooden crucifix

Crucifix (Michelangelo)

The Crucifix is a polychrome wood sculpture thought to be by High Renaissance master Michelangelo, finished in 1492. It is located at the high altar of the church of Santo Spirito di Firenze in Florence, Italy....
which was placed over the high altar. Today the crucifix is in the octagonal sacristy that can be reached from the left, west aisle of the church.

The cloisters and the Cenacolo

The convent had two cloisters, called Chiostro dei Morti and Chiostro Grande ("Cloister of the Dead" and "Grand Cloister"). The first takes its name from the great number of tombstone decorating its walls, and was built around 1600 by Alfonso Parigi

Alfonso Parigi

Alfonso Parigi the Younger was an italy architect and scenographer, the son of Giulio Parigi.He worked mainly in Florence, beginning at a very early age as his father's assistant....
. The latter was constructed in 1564-1569 by Bartolomeo Ammannati in a classicistic style.

The former convent also contains the great refectory (Cenacolo di Santo Spirito) with a large fresco portraying the Crucifixion over a fragmentary Last Supper, both attributed to Andrea Orcagna

Andrea Orcagna

Andrea di Cione di Arcangelo , better known as Orcagna, was an italy painter, sculptor, and architect active in Florence. A student of Andrea Pisano as well as Giotto di Bondone, his younger brothers Jacopo di Cione and Nardo di Cione were also artists....
(1360-1365). It is one of the rare examples of Late Gothic Art which can still be seen in Florence. The room also boasts a collection of sculptures from the 11th-15th centuries, including two low reliefs by Donatello

Donatello

Donatello was a famous early Renaissance Italy artist and sculpture from Florence. He is, in part, known for his work in bas-relief, a form of shallow relief sculpture that, in Donatello's case, incorporated significant 15th-century developments in perspectival illusionism....
, an high relief by Jacopo della Quercia

Jacopo della Quercia

Jacopo della Quercia was an Italy sculptor of the Italian Renaissance, a contemporary of Brunelleschi, Ghiberti and Donatello. He is considered a precursor of Michelangelo....
(Madonna with Child) and two marble sculptures by Tino da Camaino (1320-1322).

Santo Spirito di Firenze

History

Chapel frescoes

Chapels of Santo Spirito

Michelangelo's Crucifix

The cloisters and the Cenacolo

External links