One of the most famous sights of Florence is the Giotto Tower. Photos of this bell tower are decorated with postcards, posters, t-shirts, mugs and other souvenirs with views of the ancient Italian city. The tower played an important role in the life of medieval Florence. From the very beginning, it was supposed to serve as a symbol of greatness, military power and independence of the city. In this article we will talk about the long construction of the bell tower. The attraction is one of the first places on the must see list in Florence. Many tourists do not know where to look for the Giotto tower. Meanwhile, it serves as the bell tower of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore.
Campanile's Importance to Florence
In order to understand the role of the bell tower in the life of a medieval Italian city, we need to make a short excursion into history. At the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries in Italy, serious civil wars raged between the Guelphs and Gibbelins. The former advocated the strengthening of papal authority, while the latter defended the influence of the emperor. The victory of the Guelphs entailed the dominance of the Roman Curia. The tower houses of the Gibbelin clans were hidden, their owners executed or sent into exile.
To show their Catholicism before the ubiquitous Inquisition, the city authorities began to build high belfries of the Gothic cathedrals. The Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of them. Florence, which has long rivaled Siena in the aspect of whose campaign will be higher, wanted at all costs to erect the highest bell tower at its cathedral. So the Giotto tower appeared. The city decided not to stand up for the price and hire for the construction of the most fashionable and, accordingly, expensive master. The document of that time reads: “Campanila should glorify the city, and this can only be done if the work is supervised by a master eminent ... In the whole world you can’t find a person more gifted than the Florentine Giotto Bondone.”
Tower construction
According to the canons of Italian Gothic art, the cathedral, the room for baptism (baptistery) and the bell tower (campanile) were supposed to be separate from each other. Only two years after the start of the construction of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, in 1298, a pit was excavated for the foundation of the tower. Initially, the construction of the bell tower with the cathedral was entrusted to the architect Arnolfo di Cambio. However, in 1302, he died, and the construction of the bell tower was suspended for thirty years. On July 9, 1334, the bishop of the city solemnly laid the first stone and consecrated the place on which the tower was supposed to rise. Giotto began work when the city established his annual salary of one hundred gold florins - a huge amount at that time. The master, who was then 67 years old, offered the magistrate a fashionable "German" model. He also took into account the achievements of the architect of the cathedral, Arnolfo di Cambio, so that the campaign would be in harmony with the polychrome church building. Giotto applied a technique called “chiaroscuro”, which makes the tower look like it was painted. The master also developed drawings of jewelry, the so-called stories. But he didn’t manage to realize his plan in marble. He died in 1337, when the Giotto tower in Florence was built only to the first tier.
Construction continued
It would seem that this loss did not bring any harm to the city. The drawing of the eminent master, all the calculations and sketches of the “stories” of marble, which he intended to place on the walls, were already safely stored in the magistrate. However, the consuls decided to invite at least the eminent architect Andrea Pisano to continue the construction. This master was famous for the construction of the southern portal of the Baptistery. He worked on the bell tower until 1343 and managed to build the next, second tier. However, the Giotto tower at this stage was decorated with tall bifors. Although otherwise the master strictly followed the drawings left by Giotto.
In 1347, a "black death" swept across Europe. Andrea Pisano also died from the plague. The third architect, Francesco Talenti, completed the construction of the bell tower. He faced it, according to Giotto's plan, with three grades of marble, but he also made changes to the original design. Still, a quarter of a century has passed since the start of construction, and the German style has gone out of fashion. According to the plan, the 122-meter bell tower was to be crowned with a square tent with a height of 50 cubits. In 1359, Talenti consciously abandoned this idea. That first drawing, which is now kept in the Siena Museum, and the Campanile near the Cathedral of Florence are very different. But, despite the fact that the two subsequent architects brought a lot of their ideas into the creation of this wonderful creation of art, the bell tower is still called the “Giotto Tower”.
Where is the Campanile
The 84 meter high structure is hard to miss. The entire complex of buildings is located on Cathedral Square in Florence. This is the church of Santa Maria del Fiore (translated - “Our Lady of the Flowers”) and the free-standing bell tower and baptistery of San Giovanni. If you face the main portal of the cathedral, the Giotto tower is located on the right side of it.
Exterior decor
The beauty of the bell tower is amazing. Despite the monumentality and height, it seems more like jewelry than a building. The tower is elegant, airy. Floor division and high Gothic windows make it slimmer. Giotto's tower is lined with three varieties of marble: snow-white from Carrara, green from Prato and red from Siena. Twisted columns are skillfully woven into the Gothic openings. The mosaic inserts of the Cosmati brothers enliven the white-greenish walls.
Statues and bas-reliefs
It was because of this decoration that the Giotto tower was famous. Where is the master panel located? Giotto left behind a lot of groundwork. Perhaps some panels of the first and second tiers belong to his incisor or to his school students. Initially, on three sides, the Giotto tower was decorated with bas-reliefs. Later, some panels were created by the master Luca Della Robbia. The third tier of the bell tower is decorated with sixteen statues. Donatello originals were moved to the museum, and copies were provided under the influence of wind, sun and rain. Some marble “stories” are attributed to Andrea Pisano.
Viewpoint
Refusing the original plan, Talenti, the last architect of the bell tower, did not even suspect that he was doing a great service to many generations of tourists. Thanks to changes in the design, the Giotto tower in Florence became almost forty meters lower, but acquired a viewing platform. Now, having overcome 414 steps, you can admire the panorama of the ancient city, consider in detail the dome of the cathedral of Brunneleschi. The entire staircase inside the tower is cut through by a large number of windows and, slowly overcoming the steps, you can admire the light, like lace, decoration of the bell tower.
A single entrance to the campaign costs 6 euros. It is much more profitable to purchase a comprehensive ticket for 10 Є, which includes a visit to the tower, the dome of the cathedral, the Baptistery of San Giovanni, the crypt of Saint Reparat and the historical museum.