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Florence By Area >> Oltrarno

Churches

Brancacci Chapel

Piazza del Carmine
Tel. 055 238 21 95

Open: 10am-5pm Mon, Wed-Sat; 1-5pm Sun (reservation required).
Closed: Tues, Public holidays.

The church of Santa Maria del Carmine is famous for The Life of St. Peter frescoes in the Branacci Chapel, commissioned by the Florentine merchant Felice Brancacci around 1424. Masolino began the work in 1425 but many of the scenes are by his pupil, Masaccio, who died before completing the cycle. Filippino Lippi finished the work 50 years later, in 1480. Masaccio's use of perspective in The Tribute Money and the tragic realism of his figures in The Expulsion of Adam and Eve placed him at the vanguard of Renaissance painting. Many great artists, including Michelangelo, later visited the chapel to study his pioneering work.

Santa Felicità

Piazza di Santa Felicità.
Tel. 055 21 30 18

Open: 9am-noon, 3-6pm Mon-Sat; 9am-1pm Sun.

A church has stood on this site since the 4th century AD, but the current building dates from the 11th century. It was extensively remodelled by Ferdinando Ruggieri in 1736-9, but some original Gothic features and the porch added by Vasari in 1564 were retained.

The Capponi family chapel to the right of the entrance houses two works by Mannerist artist Jacopo da Pontormo: a panel depicting The Deposition and an Annunciation fresco. Painted in 1525-8, they make use of vivid colours such as salmon pink, light green, apricot and gold. The roundels at the base of the ceiling vault depict the Four Evangelists, also painted by Pontormo, with help from his pupil Agnolo Bronzino.

San Frediano in Cestello

Piazza di Cestello.
Tel. 055 21 58 16

Open: 10-11:30am, 4:30-6pm Mon-Sat; 5-6:30pm Sun.

The San Frediano area, with its small, low houses, has long been associated with the wool and leather industries. The parish church of San Frediano in Cestello stands beside the Arno looking across the river. It has a bare stone exterior with a large dome that is a local landmark. It was rebuilt on the site of an older church in 1680-89 by Antonio Maria Ferri: the fresco and stuccowork inside are typical of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Nearby is a well preserved stretch of the 14th century city walls.

The Porta San Frediano, built in 1324, has a tower overlooking the road to Pisa. Its wooden doors have retained their original 14th century locks and detailed ironwork.

Santo Spirito

Piazza di Santo Spirito.
Tel. 055 21 00 30

Currently closed for renovation- call for further information.

The Augustinian foundation of this church dates from 1250. The present building has an unfinished 18th century façade, which dominates the northern end of Piazza di Santo Spirito.

Brunelleschi designed the church in 1435, but it was not completed until the late 1400's, well after his death.

Inside, the harmony of the proportions has been somewhat spoiled by the elaborate Baroque baldacchino and the High Altar, which was finished in 1607 by Giovanni Caccini. The church has 38 side altars, decorated with 15th and 16th century Renaissance paintings and sculpture, among them works by Cosimo Rosselli, Domenico Ghirlandaio and Filippino Lippi. The latter painted a Madonna and Child (1466) for the Nerli Chapel in the south transept.
In the north aisle, a door beneath the organ leads to a vestibule with an ornate coffered ceiling. It was designed by Simone del Pollaiuolo, more commonly known as Cronaca, in 1491. The sacristy adjoining the vestibule was designed by Giuliano da Sangallo in 1489.

St. Regis

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