Address: Piazza Madonna
The
Medici Chapels form part of the monumental complex of San Lorenzo, whose building
history lasts from the first years of the fifteenth century until
the early seventeenth. The church of San Lorenzo was the official
church of the Medici from their period as private residents in
their palace in Via Larga (now via Cavour), becoming their
mausoleum up to the time of the extinction of the line. Giovanni
de' Bicci de' Medici (died 1429) was the first who wished to be
buried there with his wife Piccarda in the small Sacristy of Brunelleschi.
Later, his son Cosimo the Elder, was buried in the crossing of
the church. The project for a family tomb was conceived in 1520
when Michelangelo began work on the New Sacristy, corresponding
to the Old Sacristy by Brunelleschi on the other side of the
church. It was above all Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, future Pope
Clement VII who wished to erect a mausoleum for certain members
of his family, Lorenzo the Magnificent and his brother Giuliano,
and Lorenzo, Duke of Urbino and Giuliano, Duke of Nemours.
The architecture was complete by 1524, its white walls and pietra
serena interior based on Brunelleschi. Michelangelo continued to
work on the sculptures of the sarcophagi until 1533, but the only ones actually completed were
the statues of the Dukes Lorenzo and Giuliano, the allegories of
Dawn and Dusk, Night and Day and the group of Madonna and Child
placed above the sarcophagus of the two "magnifici" and
flanked by Saints Cosmas and Damian. The latter were executed by
Montorsoli and Baccio di Montelupo, pupils of Michelangelo. As a
result of the complex history of the chapel and its elaborate
symbolism, many interpretations have been made of its sculptures.
The poses of the two principal figures represent the Active and
Contemplative lives while the famous statues on the sarcophagi
probably refer to the conditions and phases of human life. The
tombs also refer to the liberation of the soul after death, a
philosophical concept closely linked with Michelangelo's own
spirituality. In 1976, numerous drawings and sketches by
Michelangelo executed as was often the case on walls, were
discovered in a small space beneath the apse and sacristies of
the church. These drawings, fifty-six in all, show legs, feet,
heads and masks, and may be related to the statues and
architecture of the Sacristy.
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