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The Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta
(Saint Mary of The Assumption),
Pisa, Italy.
The Dome, depicting The Ascension of The Blessed Virgin, by Riminaldi.
Also seen is "The Lamp of Galileo" (leading him to invent the Law of
This File: 10 October 2005.
Source: Not known.
Author: Not known.
(Wikimedia Commons)
English: Pisa Cathedral, Italy.
Italiano: Il Duomo di Santa Maria Assunta, Pisa, Italia.
Deutsch: Der Dom Santa Maria Assunta, Pisa, Italien.
Français: La Cathédrale de Pise.
Nederlands: De dom van Pisa.
Español: El Domo de Pisa, Italia.
Photo: 8 May 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Stefan Lew.
(Wikimedia Commons)
Pisa Cathedral,
The Leaning Tower of Pisa,
and The Baptistry.
Photo: 18 November 2011.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)
The heart of the
Piazza del Duomo, Pisa, Italy, is the
Duomo, the
Mediaeval Cathedral of the
Archdiocese of Pisa, Dedicated to
Santa Maria Assunta (Saint Mary of The Assumption). The Cathedral has two Aisles on either side of the Nave. The Transept consists of three Aisles. The Church is known also as a Primatial Church, the Archbishop of Pisa being a
Primate since 1092.
Its construction began in 1064 by the architect
Buscheto. It set the model for the distinctive Pisan
Romanesque Style of architecture. The mosaics of the Interior, as well as the Pointed Arches, show a strong
Byzantine influence.
The façade, of Grey
Marble and White Stone, set with discs of Coloured Marble, was built by a Master Builder named
Rainaldo, as indicated by an inscription above the Middle Door:
Rainaldus prudens operator.
The massive
Bronze Main Doors were made in the workshops of
Giambologna, replacing the original doors destroyed in a fire in 1595. The original Central Door was of Bronze, made around 1180 by Bonanno Pisano, while the other two doors were probably of Wood. However, Worshippers have never used the façade doors to enter, instead entering by way of the
Porta di San Ranieri (Saint Ranieri's Door), in front of The Leaning Tower, built around 1180 by
Bonanno Pisano.
The Duomo, the Mediaeval Cathedral of The Archdiocese of Pisa, Italy.
Photo: 16 November 2013.
Source: Own work.
Permission: Outside of Wikimedia Foundation projects, Attribution is to be made to:
W. Lloyd MacKenzie, via Flickr @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/saffron_blaze/
(Wikimedia Commons)
Above the doors are four rows of Open Galleries with, on top, statues of The Madonna with Child and, on the corners, The Four Evangelists.
Also in the façade, is found the tomb of Buscheto (on the Left Side) and an inscription about the Foundation of the Cathedral and the victorious battle against the
Saracens.
At the East End of the Exterior, high on a Column rising from the
Gable, is a modern replica of The
Pisa Griffin, the largest
Islamic metal sculpture known, the original of which was placed there, probably in the 11th- or 12th-Century, and is now in the Cathedral Museum.
The Interior is faced with Black and White Marble and has a
Gilded Ceiling and a
Frescoed Dome. It was largely redecorated after a fire in 1595, which destroyed most of the Renaissance art works.
The Mediaeval Pulpit,
in Pisa Cathedral.
This File: 21 October 2005.
Source: Not known.
Author: Not known.
(Wikimedia Commons)
Fortunately, the impressive
mosaic of Christ in Majesty, in the
Apse, flanked by The Blessed Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist, survived the fire. It evokes the mosaics in the Church of
Monreale,
Sicily. Although it is said that the mosaic was done by
Cimabue, only the head of Saint John was done by the artist in 1302, his last Work, since he died in Pisa the same year. The Cupola, at the intersection of the
Nave and
Transept, was decorated by
Riminaldi, showing The
Assumption of The Blessed Virgin.
Galileo is believed to have formulated his Theory about the movement of a
pendulum by watching the swinging of the
Incense Lamp (not the present one) hanging from the Ceiling of the
Nave. That Lamp, smaller and simpler than the present one, is now kept in the
Camposanto, in the Aulla Chapel.
The Granite Corinthian Columns, between the Nave and the Aisle, came originally from the
mosque of
Palermo, captured by the Pisans in 1063.
The
Coffered Ceiling of the Nave was replaced after the fire of 1595. The present Gold-Decorated Ceiling carries The Coat-of-Arms of The
Medici.
English: The Apse,
Santa Maria Assunta Cathedral, Pisa, Tuscany, Italy. The Apse.
Français: Cathédrale Santa Maria Assunta, Pise, Toscane, Italie. L'abside.
Photo: 30 September 2007.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)
The elaborately-carved
Pulpit (1302–1310), which also survived the fire, was made by
Giovanni Pisano, a masterwork of Mediaeval sculpture. Having been packed away during the redecoration, it was not rediscovered and restored until 1926. The Pulpit is supported by Plain Columns (two of which are mounted on Lion's sculptures) on one side and by
Caryatids and a
Telamon on the other; the latter represent Saint Michael, The Evangelists, the Four
Cardinal Virtues flanking the Church, and a bold, naturalistic depiction of a naked
Hercules. A Central
Plinth, with The
Liberal Arts, supports The Four
Theological Virtues.
The present-day Pulpit is a reconstruction of the original. It does not lie in its original position, which was nearer The High Altar, and the Columns and Panels are not original. The original Stairs (perhaps of Marble) were lost.
The Upper Part has nine narrative Panels showing scenes from The New Testament, carved in White Marble with a
Chiaroscuro effect and separated by: Figures of Prophets; The Annunciation; The
Massacre of The Innocents; The Nativity;
Adoration of The Magi; The Flight into Egypt; The Crucifixion; and two Panels of The Last Judgement.
The Coffered Ceiling,
containing the Coat-of-Arms of The Medici Family,
Pisa Cathedral, Italy.
This File: 21 October 2005.
Source: Not known.
Author: Not known.
(Wikimedia Commons)
The Church also contains the bones of Saint
Ranieri, Pisa's
Patron Saint, and the tomb of
Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII, carved by
Tino da Camaino in 1315. That tomb, originally in the Apse, just behind The High Altar, was disassembled and moved many times over the Centuries for political reasons. While the sarcophagus is still in the Cathedral, some of the statues were put in the
Camposanto, or in the top of the Church's façade. The original statues are now in the Museum of the
Opera del Duomo. Pope Gregory VIII was also buried in the Cathedral. The fire of 1595 destroyed his tomb.
The Interior of Pisa Cathedral, Italy.
Photo: 8 June 2006.
Source: From en.wikipedia.
(Wikimedia Commons)
The Cathedral has a prominent role in determining the beginning of The Pisan New Year. Between the 10th-Century A.D. and 1749, when The Tuscan Calendar was reformed, Pisa used its own Calendar, in which The First Day of The Year was 25 March, The
Feast Day of The
Annunciation of Mary [
Editor: In England, 25 March used to be the beginning of The New Year. It was known as "Lady Day"]. Years were counted such that The Pisan New Year began nine months before the "normal" New Year. The exact moment was determined by a ray of the Sun that, through a window on the Left Side, falls on an egg-shaped Marble, just above the Pulpit by Giovanni Pisano; This occurred at Noon.
Some Relics brought back during The Crusades can also be found in the Cathedral. Alleged remains of three
Saints (Abibo,
Gamaliel, and
Nicodemus), and a Vase that is said to be one of the
Jars of Cana.
The building, as have several in Pisa, has tilted slightly since its construction, though not nearly to the extent of the nearby Leaning
Tower of Pisa.
