Basilica of Santa Croce Florence

The beautiful Santa Croce church full of funerary monuments

The Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze is an impressive basilica in Florence Italy. The church is known for the many funerary monuments of famous artists and the Pazzi chapel.

Santa Croce: famous tombs in Piazza Santa Croce

Around 1294 the construction of the gothic church Santa Croce. The church was designed by a rival Dominican order to surpass the Santa Maria Novella, already found elsewhere in Florence was built. The Santa Croce soon became the largest Franciscan church. In the Basilica di Santa Croce you will find sixteen chapels, the most famous of which is the Capella de Pazzi. Due to the many funerary monuments, the Santa Croce has become the Pantheon of Florence.

The History of the Santa Croce Basilica

The Basilica of Santa Croce was built from 1294 by Di Cambio on the site of an older Franciscan church. In total, sixteen chapels have been built, most of which are in Giotto's name. The floor plan of the church consists of a T-shape, with the interior divided over three naves. In 1560 the church was renovated by order of Cosimo I. The renovation of the Santa Croce Florence was carried out by Vasari. As a result, many original works of art were unfortunately lost. The current campanile dates from 1842, because the official bell tower was struck by lightning.

^{Basilica of Santa Croce}

^{The beautiful altar of the basilica}

Pazzi chapel

In the cloister next to the church, a chapel was added in the fifteenth century, which would become the most famous work of art of Basilica di Santa Croce: the Capella de Pazzi. This chapel was designed by the builder of the dome of the Duomo: Filippo Brunelleschi. Brunelleschi created a Renaissance masterpiece of the Pazzi chapel, in which harmony of all parts are perfectly achieved. Brunelleschi has applied gray sandstone against the white plastered walls for the accents, so that the shapes of the outside are reinforced in the interior.

Famous tombs

The Santa Croce has become known as the Pantheon of Florence. This is because the church contains many tombs and funerary monuments of famous Florentines. For example, you will find the grave of political leader Niccolò Machiavelli, but also of scientist Galileo Galilei. In addition, a large number of artists and architects are buried in the Santa Croce, including Michelangelo and Vasari. Furthermore, Dante has a funerary monument here, but is himself buried in Ravenna where he died in exile.

^{Courtyard at the Santa Croce basilica}

^{The tomb in honor of Dante}

Piazza Santa Croce di Firenze

Besides the Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze, there is more to see in Piazza Santa Croce. For example, opposite the Santa Croce is the Palazzo Cocchi-Serristori. It is a Renaissance-style palace built by Da Sangallo on behalf of Lorenzo de Medici. Today, the palace houses the regional councils of Florence. It is a cube-like building, but on the inside you will find frescoes in the private chapel and in the stairwell eighteenth-century frescoes by Bimbacci. On the south side of the square you will find another palace: Palazzo dell'Antella. San Giovanni designed this palace in the seventeenth century. A striking feature of this palace is the front consisting of frescoes from, among others, Passignano. Centrally above the entrance is a bust of Cosimo II. Today the ground floor is used as a restaurant and shops, while the top floors contain luxurious apartments.

Tours & Tickets Basilica of Santa Croce

Where is the Santa Croce church in Florence?