Friday, 14 May 2010

Florence, 12 May 2010 - The Tombs



Saw tombs of Leonardo Bruni and Carlo Marsuppini that face each other across the nave at Santa Croce. Ostensibly very similar, the (otherwise crap) information boards in the church highlight the key difference between the two as being the lack of triumphant symbolism on Marsuppini's, presumably as he presided over a more genteel era (1444-53).




Bruni's tomb does indeed feature several nods to triumph and glory, i.e. Eagles, Lions, Winged Victories, Rampant Lion heraldry surmounting the arch, that are not present in Marsuppini's.



Next visit - must check whether Marsuppini's father's slab really is directly below his son's tomb - I read this (I think) in the Grove Art entry for Settignano.
Separately saw 3 other tombs in San Lorenzo, 2 celebrated, the other not so. Cosimo's brother Giovanni is in the centre of Botticelli and Donatello's old sacristy (tomb designed and made by ????); Piero the Gouty and his brother Giovanni are to one side in Verrocchio's "most beautiful tomb [of the Reniassance]" (San Lorenzo Audio Guide).
This IS amazing, I initially thought it was French Rococo!









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