Florence Cathedral

View of the façade with Giotto's Bell Tower.

One of the most amazing architecture made during the Renaissance was built in Italy by a man called Filippo Brunelleschi. Brunelleschi made the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral in Florence, Italy. It took him 16 years to create and used mainly only two materials, marble and brick. The cathedral started its construction on 9 September 1296. Many experts do not understand the logic of how it was built. But what we do know is that Brunelleschi invented many new techniques to produce such an amazing cathedral. TheBasilica di Santa Maria del FioreorFlorence Cathedralis thecathedralchurch ofFlorence,Italy.Thebasilicawas designed byArnolfo di Cambiowith the dome byFilippo Brunelleschi.Thebell towerwas designed byGiotto.The outside is decorated withmarblepanelsingreenandpinkbordered bywhite.The building was begun in 1296 and was finished in 1469, except for the decoration. Thefacade(the main front) was decorated between 1876 and 1903. The dome, which is built of bricks with stone ribs, is one of the biggest in the world.

Statues

From about 1464 the members of theWool Guildwanted to have twelve statues of people from theOld Testamentof the Bible carved for the Florence Cathedral. These statues were to go on the buttresses all around the outside walls, high up near the roof.

• Joshua in terracotta by Donatello 1410
• Hercules in terracotta by Agostino di Duccio 1463
• David In marble. This is the statue of David by Michelangelo 1501-1504. On 12 November 2010, a fiberglass replicaof theDavidwas installed on the roofline of Florence Cathedral, for one day only. Photographs of the installation reveal the statue the way theOperaiwho commissioned the work originally expected it to be seen.

• 
  Original David by Michelangelo
• 
  Fiberglass replica ofDavidat Florence cathedral seen from the north

Other websites

• L'Opera del Duomo, Firenze
• "The Cathedral".The Florence Art Guide.2004.RetrievedJuly 14,2006.
• Horner, Susan; Horner, Joanna (December 27, 2005)."Chapter III: The Cathedral - Exterior".Walks in Florence.RetrievedJuly 14,2006.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: year (link)
• "Duomo".Minosh Photography.Archived fromthe originalon April 7, 2010.RetrievedJuly 14,2006.
• Rick Edmondson's Unfinished Buildings