Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Gothic Florence Cathedral

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Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Italian Gothic Florence Cathedral, Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence Italy. Photographer Paul E Williams.    (TIP – use the icons below the slideshow for thumbnail photos and info)

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Photos of the Beautiful Medieval Italian Gothic Florence Cathedral

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Photos of the Medioeval Florence Cathedral, Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore ( Saint Mary of the Flower Basilica) also Florence Duomo, Italy.

Building Florence Cathedral

The building of the iconic Florence Cathedral was begun in 1296 in the Italian Gothic style. Designed by Arnolfo di Cambio the building was completed in 1436. The masterpiece was the wonder of the medieval world at the time was The Florence Cathedral dome, engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. It was the largest dome to be built since the dome of the great Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (Istanbul) nearly 1000 years earlier.the Florence Cathedral dome was the largest dome to be built in Italy since the Pantheon in Rome in 126 AD.

Florence Cathedral’s Dome

The skill and techniques to build great domes had been lost in the West with the collapse of the western Roman Empire so Brunelleschi had to devised a new system to build the dome. There was not enough wood in Tuscany to build scaffolding to support the Dome while it was being built, so Brunelleschi devised a technique that allowed the dome to be built without scaffolding.

By making the Florence Cathedral dome octagonal and by using light bricks supported by internal stone and metal hoops Brunelleschi constructed of the Dome. It was after that had defeated engineers for over 100 years.

Over 4 million bricks weighing 37000 tons were used in the construction Florence Cathedral dome which was completed in 1461. Florence Cathedral dome remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

Facade of Florence Cathedral

The facade of the Duomo, originally designed by Giotto, was removed by the Medici’s during a Renaissance purge of what was seen to be an outmoded design. The facade remained bare brick until 1864 when the exterior of the basilica was re-faced with polychrome marble panels. The facade design uses various shades of green and pink bordered by white, and has an elaborate 19th century Gothic Revival design by Emilio De Fabris.

Florence Cathedral Ensemble

The cathedral ensemble, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto’s Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence