Il Grande Museo del Duomo di Firenze Vol. I
The Cathedral, the Baptistery, the Bell Tower

edited by Timothy Verdon

This first volume is dedicated to the piazza and the monuments within the Grande Museo del Duomo complex. The piazza represents an intersection of space, life and colour. Its ancient builders wanted to create a space with a celestial configuration. The Baptistery of Saint John, which emerged from the remains of a great Roman domus, symbolises the continuity of the medieval Christian Florence with the ancient pagan Florence. The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore embodies an extraordinary collective effort, a centuries-old commitment of resources and energy, signifying the moral identity of Florentines and their dignity as creators and connoisseurs of art. The Campanile by Giotto, the tower that accompanies Santa Maria del Fiore, demonstrates its rich sculptural decoration by Andrea Pisano, Donatello, Luca Della Robbia and others.

Every aspect of each building is addressed through a tour of the external and the internal, and an analysis of the works of art that enrich them. Spectacular images showing artwork and recently restored buildings, plans and insights coalesce to create a useful tool for understanding the history of the complex and the art that decorates it. They also serve as a comfortable and functional vade mecum to really discover the experience of visiting the most important Florentine monuments.

I. The Cathedral, the Baptistery, the Bell Tower
II. The New Opera del Duomo Museum.