Gaetano Baccani's "Systematization" of the Piazza del Duomo in Florence

Abstract

Emilio de Fabris's completion of the west front of Santa Maria del Fiore is the best-known of the architectural interventions carried out during the nineteenth century in the Piazza del Duomo and Piazza di San Giovanni in Florence. But this initiative was preceded by an earlier one that was more radical in character, insofar as it transformed the area around the Campanile and Duomo. A proposal of November 1823 by the architect Gaetano Baccani resulted in the demolition of a large part of the late medieval cathedral canonry and the creation of an extensive new piazza on the south side of Santa Maria del Fiore. This intervention introduced two issues that were to become fundamental to the notion of urban patrimony. On the one hand, it prompted consideration of the relationship between a historic monument and its ambience; on the other, it brought into focus the tension that was likely to exist between conservation and the creation of a modern urban environment. The present study publishes Baccani's formal submission to the Deputazione Secolare sopra l'Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore and draws on other documents preserved in the Archivio dell'Opera to construct a detailed history of the project. The study also introduces other literary and visual materials to establish the nature of Baccani's "systematization" of the Piazza del Duomo. Baccani's project is linked retrospectively to a Napoleonic plan for the modernization of Florence, but it is discussed also as a harbinger of later programs of urban renewal in Florence and in other Italian cities. The paper outlines the history of the canonry compound and places Baccani's reorganization of it in the context of the development of a new relationship between church and state in Florence. The piazza likewise is considered in relation to the transformation of Florence into a modern, orderly city, well-suited to the growing tourist industry. From Baccani's proposal to the Deputazione Secolare it is apparent that he wished it to be believed that his project was in keeping with the intentions of the original architects of the Duomo. The present study considers Baccani's project in this light, while also assessing the extent to which his plans were rooted in his own time. In particular, Baccani's conception of the area around the Duomo is discussed in relation to other urbanistic projects that were planned in Florence, Milan, and Rome during the Napoleonic period. Finally, Baccani's scheme is considered in relation to recent studies of the area around the Duomo by Piero Sanpaolesi, Margaret Haines, and Marvin Trachtenberg. The paper establishes that Baccani's intervention fundamentally changed the manner in which Santa Maria del Fiore and the Campanile could be seen, revealing an "ideal" view of the two buildings in juxtaposition. Baccani's vision is discussed in relation to a widespread nineteenth-century wish to consecrate the individual monument. The study concludes by introducing a number of unfamiliar images of the Campanile and Duomo and proposes that they lent authority to Baccani's concept of a "best" general view of these monuments.

Medici Funerary Monuments in the Duomo of Florence during the Fourteenth Century: A Prologue to “The Early Medici”*

“…The sarcophagi were most likely moved during the renovations at the Cathedral in 1842–43 and as a result of Gaetano Beccani’s plans at that time for the enlargement of the Piazza del Duomo. Smith, 2000b, illustrates the sarcophagi immured at the Canonica. The earliest in date of the three, the Psychopompos Sarcophagus (now in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo), is relatively unworn, suggesting a history for this tomb different from that of the other two, although it has been paired as a twin with the Marriage Sarcophagus (also in the Duomo museum) from their placement flanking the south doors of the Baptistry in the nineteenth century.…”

“…2079: the document states that no one can be buried within the Cathedral without the express consent of the operai and the Consuls of the Wool Guild. For a documentation and discussion of the claiming of the spaces around the Cathedral in order to create a piazza around the new structure, see Haines, 1997; Smith, 2000b. Del Migliore, 38, mentions that there was an attempt to clear the space in 1340, but there is no known archival source that supports this claim.…”

“…The Canon’s house was destroyed in the 1840s when Gaetano Beccani enlarged the Piazza del Duomo. During Vasari’s day it extended into the present piazza towards the south flank of the Cathedral: Smith, 2000b.…”

“…It should be noted that these arca s were not simply honorific. When they were opened in 1824 human remains were found within: see Smith, 2000b, 463.…”

“… 36 On these sarcophagi, see Smith, 2000b: I want to thank Roger Crum for this reference. On the basis of a statement in Del Migliore (who had taken his information from Giovanni Villani) that Arnolfo had moved these sarcophagi from the Baptistry in 1292, Smith assumed that they were on the facade of the Compagnia di San Zanobi all through the Renaissance.…”