Frontal view of Siena Cathedral.
Siena's Cathedral (Duomo) was built between 1215 and 1263 and designed in part by Gothic master Nicola Pisano. His son, Giovanni, drew up the plans for the lower half of the facade, begun in 1285. The facade's upper half was added in the 14th century.
The 14th century was a time of great wealth and power for Siena, and plans were made to expand the cathedral into a great church that would dwarf even St. Peter's in Rome. The already-large Duomo would form just the transept of this huge cathedral.
The construction of a new nave off the Duomo's right transept got underway in 1339. But in 1348, the Black Death swept through the city and killed 4/5 of Siena's population. The giant cathedral was never completed, and the half-finished walls of the Duomo Nuovo (New Cathedral) survive as a monument to Siena's ambition and one-time wealth. They are called ‘The Facciatone’ (the huge face or facade). I’ve been on it to take some shots of the city.
In the 19th century, the cathedral was extensively restored, including the addition of golden mosaics on the facade. Many of the statues decorating the façade are replicas and the originals are in the Cathedral museum which I visited too.
Thank you very much for looking and for your wonderful comments on yesterday's picture.
Btw yesterday's guy didn't manage to lure me into the shop.
The artistry in this is beyond words. Nothing, it seems, is built like this anymore, which is why it's wonderful that efforts are made to preserve such treasures.
Gothic cathedrals are such an amazing display of art. This is a great shot, but I'm sure it is even more impressive when you are standing there in front of it!
