In the picturesque cloister on the side of the Church of Santa Croce in Florence, you will find one of the greatest works by the architect Filippo Brunelleschi.
The Pazzi chapel dates from just three years before his death in 1443. The plan of the chapel is the circle and the square. A rectangular base is covered with a conical central dome supported by fine "veiled" vaulting that one also finds in the porch.
The spaces are divided up with a geometric clarity; the white intonaco (plaster) of the walls is in cool contrast to the pilasters in grey "serene" stone, and the beautiful decorations in glazed terracotta which adorn the interior are by Luca della Robbia.
In the same courtyard there is the long refectory housing the dramatic Crucifix by Cimabue. Dating from c. 1270 this was the work of art most damaged in the flood of 1966. Ten years time was necessary for the restoration of the panel painting. After lying immersed in the mud for an entire day, it seemed irredeemably lost.
Capella de’Pazzi
Piazza di Santa Croce
50122 Florence
Interior photo
Leave a comment