Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pisa
1
presented. Exhibits such as
the intricately inlaid marble
arabesque panels and fine
Corinthian capitals reveal the
twin influences of Rome and
Islam on Pisan architects in
the 12th and 13th centuries.
Be sure to see the imposing
10th-century hippogriff (half
horse, half gryphon); this
statue, cast in bronze by
Islamic craftsmen, was looted
by Pisan adventurers during
the wars against the Saracens.
The museum also contains
13th-century statues and
sculptures by Nicola and
Giovanni Pisano, including
Giovanni's ivory
Virgin and
Child
(1300) carved for the
Duomo's High Altar. There
are paintings from the 15th to
18th centuries, a fine Roman
and Etruscan archaeological
collection, and ecclesiastical
treasures and vestments
dating from the 12th century.
The museum cloister offers
a wonderful view of the
Leaning Tower
(see p160)
.
From the 11th to the 13th centuries,
Pisa's powerful navy ensured the city's
dominance in the Western Mediterranean.
Trading links with Spain and North
Africa led to a cultural revolution
(see
p46)
reflected in the splendid buildings
of the era: the Duomo, Baptistry and
Campanile. Pisa's decline was assured
when the Arno began to silt up. Salt marsh, partly a
nature reserve, now divides the city from the sea.
Inlaid marble,
Duomo façade
P
Piazza dei Cavalieri
The Piazza dei Cavalieri stands
at the heart of Pisa's student
quarter. The huge building on
the north side of the square,
covered in exuberant black
and white
sgraffito
decoration
(designs scratched into wet
plaster), is the Palazzo dei
Cavalieri and houses one of
Pisa University's most prestig-
ious colleges: the Scuola
Normale Superiore. The site
was originally occupied by
Pisa's medieval town hall, but
Cosimo I ordered its destruc-
tion when the city fell under
Florentine rule. The council
chamber, however,
was spared and is
now a lecture
hall. The present
flamboyant build-
ing was designed
in 1562 by Vasari,
as the head-
quarters of the
Cavalieri di San
Stefano, an order
of knights created
by Cosimo in 1561.
An equestrian statue
of Cosimo by Pietro
Francavilla (1596)
stands outside.
Santo Stefano
dei Cavalieri
Campo dei Miracoli
R
Campo dei Miracoli
See pp158-9.
E
Museo dell'Opera
del Duomo
Piazza Duomo.
Tel
050 387 22 10.
#
E
Museo delle Sinopie
Piazza del Duomo.
Tel
050 387 22 10.
#
Apr-Sep: 8am-8pm
daily; Mar & Oct: 9am-6pm
daily; Nov-Feb: 10am-5pm
daily.
&
This fascinating museum
displays sketches from
the fresco cycle that once
covered the walls of Campo
Santo cemetery
(see
pp158-9)
. The frescoes
disintegrated when the
cemetery was bombed in
1944, but the underlying
sketches survived. They
were removed from the walls
for conservation before being
rehoused in the museum.
There are also displays
showing how fresco artists
went about their work.
10am-5pm daily.
7
Housed in the
cathedral's 13th-
century former
Chapter House,
the museum
was opened in
1986. All the
exhibits were
formerly in the
Duomo and
Baptistry.
Modern display
methods ensure
that they are
excellently
&
10th-century bronze
hippogriff
