Basilica of Santa Maria Novella and the

Leaning Tower of Pisa

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella Located: across

from the main train station in Florence, Italy

First great Basilica of Florence

• Florence’s principal Dominican-order church.

Within it are many little chapels such as the Rucellai Chapel, Bardi Chapel, and Gondi Chapel. These little Chapels store art, commemorate artists, and are used as memorials for donors to the church during its construction.

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella

Construction Started in 1279 and it was consecrated in 1420

Its called Santa Maria Novella (new) because it was built on top of the Santa Maria delle Vigne.

When the Dominican Order was assigned to this site in 1221, they decided to create a new church and cloister.

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella It was designed by two Dominican Friars,

Fra Sisto Fiorentino and Fra Ristoro da Campi

It is a Gothic Renaissance style church In 1456, Leone Battista Alberti was charged

with designing the upper facade of the church. He wanted to bring humanist archituture and detailing to the church, and did so while maintaining harmony with the pre-existing gothic design

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella

Its vast interior is based on a basilica plan and divided into a nave with two aisles, stained glass windows, and a transept.

The nave is 100 meters long and feels austere

The ceiling is pointed arches and four diagonal buttresses in black and white

Also there are Corinthian Columns supporting the arches

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella

The church, cloister, and chapterhouse store arts, treasures, and funerary monuments

There are frescoes by masters of Gothic and early Renaissance artists stored there.

The storages were financed by important Florentine families who, by giving, insured themselves funerary monuments on the consecrated site.

Leaning Tower of Pisa

Leaning Tower of Pisa The freestanding bell tower of the

cathedral of Pisa Unintended leaning to one side 183.27 feet tall on the low side, 185.93

feet tall on the high side Currently leaning at about 4 degrees Reopened to the public in 2001

Leaning Tower of Pisa No one knows for sure who the architect behind

the Tower is. Theories include Guglielmo, Bonanno Pisano, and Diotisalvi.

Construction occurred in three stages over 199 years. Ground work began in 1173. By the time construction started on the second floor, the tower already had begun to sink. Before the third phase started, there were battles with other cities which allowed the soil to settle while everyone was fighting. If there wasn’t fighting, it is almost certain the tower would have toppled.

Leaning Tower of Pisa In 1272, construction started back up again

under Giovanni di Simone. To compensate for the already evident tilt, the

engineers built one side higher than the other, creating a curve in the actual architecture of the building.

In 1319, the 7th floor was finally finished by Tommaso di Andrea Pisano, who harmonized the gothic bell chamber, finished in 1372, with the Romanesque tower.

Leaning Tower of Pisa Legend has it Galileo Galilei dropped two

cannonballs, of different weights, off the top of the tower to show that gravity acted the same on objects regardless of their masses.

In World War II, the Germans were using the tower as an observation tower. A U.S. sergeant sent to confirm the German presence was impressed by the beauty of the tower and cathedral and refrained from telling the Army and prevented it from being destroyed in the war.

Leaning Tower of Pisa In 1964 the Italian Government asked

for help in preventing the tower from toppling over, but retain its tilt so that tourists would still want to come and visit

A task force of engineers, mathematicians, and historians from all over the world met to find a method to stabilize it.

Leaning Tower of Pisa First, they added nearly 800 tons of lead

weights to the raised side as counterweights.

In 1990, the tower was officially closed to the public

Leaning Tower of Pisa Starting in 1990, the engineers began

their plan. They removed bells from the bell tower, added anchored cables to the third floor, and removed 38 cubic meters of soil from under the raised side. This straightened the tower by 17.7 inches. After a decade of work, the tower was reopened to the public on December 15th, 2001.

Leaning Tower of Pisa In May 2008,

after the removal of another 70 tons of the ground, the tower had stopped moving. It is expected to be stable for the next 200 years.