Florence - Florence and Tuscany - page 151

the realistic portrayal of nature comes to life in a number of major paintings, including the
Deposition of Christ (1432), originally commissioned for the church of Santa Trìnita.
Giovanni Antonio Sogliani's fresco The Miraculous Supper of St Domenic (1536) dom-
inates the former monks' refectory in the cloister; and Fra' Angelico's huge Crucifixion
and Saints fresco (1441-42) decorates the former chapterhouse. But it is the 44 monastic
cells on the 1st floor that are the most haunting: at the top of the stairs, Fra' Angelico's
most famous work, Annunciation (c 1440), commands all eyes.
A stroll around each of the cells reveals snippets of many more fine religious reliefs by
the Tuscan-born friar, who decorated the cells between 1440 and 1441 with deeply devo-
tional frescoes to guide the meditation of his fellow friars. Most were executed by Fra'
Angelico himself; others are by aides under his supervision, including Benozzo Gozzoli.
Among several masterpieces is the magnificent Adoration of the Magi in the cell used by
Cosimo the Elder as a meditation retreat (Nos 38 to 39). Quite a few of the frescoes are
extremely gruesome - check out the cell of San Antonino Arcivescovo, which features a
depiction of Jesus pushing open the door of his sepulchre, squashing a nasty-looking devil
in the process. After centuries of being known as 'Il Beato Angelico' (literally 'The
Blessed Angelic One') or simply 'Il Beato' (The Blessed), the Renaissance's most blessed
religious painter was made a saint by Pope John Paul II in 1984.
Contrasting with the pure beauty of these frescoes are the plain rooms that Savonarola
called home from 1489. Rising to the position of prior at the Dominican convent, it was
from here that the fanatical monk railed against luxury, greed and corruption of the clergy.
Kept as a kind of shrine to the turbulent priest, they house a portrait, a few personal items,
the linen banner Savonarola carried in processions and a grand marble monument erected
by admirers in 1873.

Piazza della Santissima Annunziata
MAP

PIAZZA

GOOGLE MAP

Giambologna's equestrian statue of Grand Duke Ferdinando I de' Medici commands the
scene from the centre of this majestic square, dominated by the facades of Chiesa della San-
tissima Annunziata MAP GOOGLE MAP , c 1250, rebuilt by Michelozzo et al in the mid-15th
century, and the Ospedale degli Innocenti MAP GOOGLE MAP (Hospital of the Innocents; Piazza della
SS Annunziata 12) , Europe's first orphanage founded in 1421.
Look up to admire the classically influenced portico, designed by Brunelleschi and
famously decorated by Andrea della Robbia (1435-1525) with terracotta medallions of