The Brochure Series
OF ARCHITECTURAL ILLUSTRATION.
| Vol. I. | MAY, 1895. | No. 5. |
TWO FLORENTINE PAVEMENTS.
The church of San Miniato alMonte, just outside the wallssoutheast of Florence, and theBaptistery, or church of SanGiovanni Battista, in Florence, are amongthe finest examples of the Tuscan Romanesquestyle, and both probably date fromabout the same time—the early part ofthe twelfth century—although the dateof San Miniato has until recently beenreferred several centuries further back.
These two churches have many pointsof similarity, although entirely different inplan. San Miniato was referred to inthe article upon the Byzantine-Romanesquedoorways of Southern Italy in ourFebruary number, and Fergusson's classificationof Byzantine-Romanesque was, forthe time being, adopted for lack of betterauthority. Later writers have, however,generally agreed that there is little or noByzantine influence in these two churches;that the delicate and refined treatment ofclassic forms here found is not the resultof Byzantine or Greek influence, but is dueentirely to the natural refinement of theTuscan race. The same characteristicwas again shown later in the treatment ofGothic detail, and is evident in theRenaissance work of this locality.
The dimensions of San Miniato weregiven in the February number referred toabove. The interior of this church isgenerally considered one of the mostbeautiful interiors of Italy on account ofits effective basilican plan with a cryptopening from the nave, its beautiful andrich detail, and its fine mosaics and decorations.The pavement is not the leastof its attractions.
The Baptistery will be remembered forits famous bronze doors, the work of Ghiberti,which have given occasion for somuch discussion, favorable and unfavorable.It is octagonal in plan, and 108feet in diameter externally. It was erectedoriginally for the cathedral of the city,but in the eleventh and twelfth centurieswas so thoroughly remodeled that norecognizable features of the old buildingremain.
The pavements, in point of design,appear quite independent of the otherornamental work in the two buildings weare considering.
The motives of ornament are thosecommonly found in the stuffs, especiallysilks, of Sicily and the East, and their usehere could easily be accounted for throughconnection with Sicily. It is known thatthe Hotel de Tiraz at Palermo, the greatroyal manufactory of stuffs, artistic metalwork, mosaics, etc., established in thesixth century, and which continued untilthe sixteenth, supplied not only much ofthe finest textile products for all ofEurope in that time, but also furnishedworkmen who carried with them thedesigns and methods of Sicilian textilemanufacture to other countries. Suchmanufactories were established in severalItalian cities, among them Lucca.
The relationship seems clear, as theforms are perfectly similar. The beastsand birds set in balancing pairs facingeach other and repeated in an all-over[69]pattern, as in a woven fabric, stronglysuggest the Sicilian silks. Eug. Muentzin his work, "La Tapisserie," speaks ofthis evident relationship. The internalevidence of the design itself would bequite sufficient if we had no other meansof tracing it.
These two pavements are practicallyunique, as far as we are able to learn.They are marble inlay, the pattern havingbeen cut out in a slab of