The Basilica of Santa Croce,

Florence The Basilica of the Holy Cross is the principal Franciscan church in Firenze, Italy, and the largest Franciscan church in the world .

It is the burial place of some of the most illustrious Italians, such as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Foscolo, Gentile, Rossini and Marconi.

It is known also as the Pantheon of Italian Glories (Tempio dell'Itale Glorie).

The neo-Gothic marble façade by Nicolò Matasdates from 1857-1863.

Statue of Dante Alighieri

The Santa Croce is famous for its sixteen chapels, many of them decorated with sublime frescoes by Giotto and his pupils, and for its tombs and cenotaphs.

The current church replaced an older building at the same place and was built by Arnolfo di Cambio, who also built the Duomo and the Palazzo Vecchio.

Construction lasted from 1294 to 1385. It was consecrated in 1442 by Pope Eugene IV.

Artists whose work is present in the church include

•Benedetto and Giuliano da Maiano (pulpit; doors to Cappella dei Pazzi)

•Antonio Canova (Alfieri's monument)

•Cimabue (Crucifixion- now in the refectory)

•Andrea della Robbia (altarpiece in Cappella Medici) •Luca della Robbia (decoration of Cappella dei Pazzi)

•Desiderio da Settignano (Marsuppini's tomb; frieze in Cappella dei Pazzi)

•Donatello (relief of the Annunciation on the south wall; crucifix in the Cappella Bardi; St Louis of Toulouse in the refectory)

•Agnolo Gaddi (frescoes in Cappella Castellani and chancel; stained glass in chancel)

•Taddeo Gaddi (frescoes in Cappella Baroncelli; Crucifixion in the sacristy; Last Supper in the refectory)

More artists whose work is present in the church:

•Giotto (frescoes in Cappella Peruzzi and Cappella Bardi; possibly Coronation of the Virgin, altarpiece in Cappella Baroncelli) •Giovanni da Milano (frescoes in Cappella Rinuccini) •Masso di Banco (frescoes in Cappella Bardi di Vernio) •Henry Moore (statue of a warrior in the Primo Chiostro) •Andrea Orcagna (frescoes in the refectory) •Antonio Rossellino (relief of the Madonna del Latte in the south aisle) •Bernardo Rossellino (Bruni's tomb) •Santi di Tito (Supper at Emmaus and Resurrection, altarpieces in the north aisle) •Giorgio Vasari (Michelangelo's tomb)

Polittico by Baroncelli, painting by Giotto and school

Cenotaph of Niccolo

Machiavelli“Tanto nomini, nullum per elogium”

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (May 3, 1469 – June 21, 1527) was an Italian political philosopher, musician, poet, and romantic comedic playwright. He is a figure of the Italian Renaissance and a central figure of its political component, most widely known for his treatises on realist political theory (The Prince) on the one hand and republicanism (Discourses on Livy) on the other.

His resting place is unknown; however a cenotaph in his honor was placed at the Church of Santa Croce in Florence.

Cenotaph of Dante Alighieri

• Durante degli Alighieri, (May/June c.1265 - Sept 14, 1321), commonly known as Dante Alighieri, was a Florentine poet of the Middle Ages.

• His central work, the Divina Commedia (originally called "Commedia" and later called "Divina" (divine) by Boccaccio hence "Divina Commedia"), is often considered the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language and a masterpiece of world literature.

• In Italy he is known as "the Supreme Poet" (il Sommo Poeta).

• Danteis also called the "Father of the Italian language".

Tomb of Galileo Galilei

(by Michelangelo)

Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni

(March 6, 1475 – February 18, 1564),

commonly known as Michelangelo.

He was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet and engineer. Despite making few forays beyond the arts, his versatility in the disciplines he took up was of such a high order that he is often considered a contender for the title of the archetypal Renaissance man, along with his rival and fellow Italian Leonardo da Vinci.

Tomb of Michelangelo

Tomb of Michelangelo,

Detail

Monument to Gionanni Niccolini

Gionanni Battista Niccolini (1782-1861) historian, playwright, and patriot.

The statue of liberty breaking the chains of bondage, masterpiece by Pio Fredi (1872) is purported to have inspired Bartholdi for the famous "Liberty Statue" in the port of New York which France donated to the USA in 1866 (sic) for the first centennial of their independence.

Other tombs and monu-ments in Santa Croce include those to:

Leon Battista Alberti (15th century architect and artistic theorist)

Vittorio Alfieri (18th century poet and dramatist)

Eugenio Barsanti (co-inventor of the internal combustion engine)

Charlotte Bonaparte (daughter of Joseph Bonaparte)

Leonardo Bruni (15th century chancellor of the Republic, scholar and historian)

Ugo Foscolo (19th century poet)

Giovanni Gentile (20th century philosopher)

Lorenzo and Vittorio Ghiberti

Carlo Marsuppini (15th century chancellor of the Republic)

Raffaello Morgheni (19th century engraver)

Gioacchino Rossini

Cappella dei Pazzi

The chapel was built as the chapter house by Filippo Brunelleschi between 1442 and 1446 and completed in the 1470s.

Thank you for your visit. Do visit the real Firenze !