Santa Maria del Carmine

The construction of this Church was begun in 1268 but completed only in 1476, apart from the doorway, the façade has never been decorated. The Church is known especially for the Cappella Brancacci and for Masaccio’s frescoes, considered masterpieces. It was partially devasteted by a fire in 1771 and then rebuilt on the interior, to plans by Giuseppe Ruggieri in 1782. The interior is built to a Latin cross, and has a single nave, with five Chapels on each side.

In the transept there are seven Chapels in Rococò and Neoclassical style and the Tomb of Pier Soderini by Benedetto da Rovezzano. Soderini, who died in 1522 in Rome, was the last gonfaloniere or magistrate of the Florentine Republic. At the head of the left transept is the Chapel Corsini with a high relief of Sant’Andrea Corsini. From the transept you reach the Sacresty, decorated with frescoes of 14th century. Santa Maria del Carmine has two cloister: the first near Sala Capitolare, a buildung of 17th cenutry without important works, the second has some frescoes of 1424 by Masaccio and pictures of Brunelleschi, Masolino, Donatello.

In the Cappella Brancacci you can admire works by Masaccio, Masolino and Filippino Lippi. These works were admired by Raffaello, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. The decoration of the Chapel was left unfinished for obscure reasons.