THE BASILICA WITH NO FACADE: SAN LORENZO
The dome of the Medici Chappel towers over the Basilica, which was an extension to the church built as a mosuleum for the Medici family
The title of oldest church in Florence is a contentious one, many churches lay claim to it, but there isn't enough concrete evidence to definitively determine which is the oldest. One of these is the Basilica of San Lorenzo, its first mention in the historical record dates to 393 when it was consecrated as the city's cathedral. When it was originally built, the basilica was located just outside the city walls (as was the case with most early Christian churches in Roman times) and next to the Mugnone (a tributary of the Arno river) which has long since been diverted.
San Lorenzo was the Cathedral of Florence for about three hundred years, until it ceded its title to the Church of Santa Reparata (which itself was demolished and/or incorporated into Santa Maria Del Fiore in 1296). In 1059 it was expanded and modified for the first of many times at the behest of Pope Nicholas II; however the most important expansions and modifications were made starting in 1421. The main financier of this new expansion was Giovanni di Bici de' Medici, founder of the Medici family bank, who put master Renaissance architect Filippo Brunelleschi in charge of the project.
The renovations were notoriously slow, by 1428 only the Old Sacristy was completed, just in time to host Giovanni de' Medici's funeral, making him the first of many members of the Medici family to have their funeral and burial rites in the church. Brunelleschi died in 1446, but the church was not finished until 1470, under the project of Tuccio Manetti who made some alterations to his predecessor’s design.
One of the most interesting features of this Basilica is the contrasts between its rather plain and rough stone exterior and facade, and it's extremely precise, rational and symmetric interior. In fact, in 1518 Pope Leo X commissioned Michelangelo, to build a facade that would give the Basilica a facade that matched the beauty found inside the church, however financial issues prevented its completion. Michelangelo's original facade design drawings can be seen at the Casa Buonarroti museum. The design was also projected onto the Basilica in 2007, when the municipality of Florence was considering reviving the project after nearly 500 years.
The Basilica is home to numerous masterpieces which decorate its aisles and walls. Some of the most famous works of art you can admire in this Basilica are:
Pulpit of the Resurrection (Il Pulpito della Resurrezione) , by Donatello 1460
Martelli Annunciation (L’Annunciazione Martelli), by Filippo Lippi 1440
The Martyrdom of St. Lawrence (Martirio di San Lorenzo), by Agnolo Bronzini 1569
Marriage of the Virgin (Sposalizio della Vergine), by Rosso Fiorentino 1523
Among all these works, there is one that will likely go unnoticed: Michelangelo's balcony.
Located on the counter-facade and facing the nave, it was meant for the viewing of the relics held in the Basilica from a good vantage point.
