Description of the attraction
The cathedral ensemble in Piazza dei Miracoli (Piazza dei Miracoli) is unmatched in the world. Three buildings of sparkling white marble are located in the city center, in an emerald green, immaculately manicured meadow. In the center rises the Cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore, famous for its size; to the west of it there is a beautiful baptistery, and to the left rises the famous bell tower, which went down in the history of art as the "Leaning Tower".
The architectural ensemble, consisting of a cathedral, a baptistery and a tower, took almost 300 years to build. It is distinguished by an amazing unity of style, despite the clearly expressed individuality of each component. They are united by repeating rows of an arched gallery and windows rounded at the top. The cathedral is rightfully the dominant feature of the ensemble; the tower and baptistery are meant to complement, but not obscure it.
The construction of the cathedral began in the 1080s, led by the architect Busqueto. By this time, the city had turned into a school of craftsmanship for artists and builders who came to Pisa from all over Italy to improve their art. Therefore, there were enough talented craftsmen to implement the project. Construction progressed rapidly, and by 1150 the cathedral body was completed.
At the heart of the cathedral is the basilica, popular in ancient Rome. In the eastern part there is a semicircular apse. The three-nave transepts end with similar apses, and the altar and the central nave have two side naves on each side. The western facade is the main accent in the exterior of the cathedral. Four tiers of arcature galleries rise above the three portals. The western façade resembles Greek temples in symmetry. However, the reliefs of the bronze gates on religious subjects and the sculpture "The Mother of God and the Child" by the tower itself neutralize the pagan parallels.
The darkness of the interior contrasts with the sparkling white of the cathedral outside. Simple columns with carved capitals rise up to an arcade that combines five adjacent stone arches of contrasting colors. The walls of the nave, thanks to the masonry in the form of horizontal stripes of multicolored marble, seem to be devoid of weight. Tuscan masters often resorted to a similar technique. The wooden floor of the nave is located quite low, and this creates a twilight in the temple, softening the coldness of the stone.
The Cathedral Chair by Giovanni Pisano is a masterpiece of 14th century Pisa sculpture. Reliefs with episodes from the New Testament, Childhood and Passion of Christ, the Last Judgment were made in 1302-1310. The compositions are separated from each other by the figures of the Prophets and Sibyls.
