Donatello's Bronze Doors for the Old Sacristy of San Lorenzo

• Autores: John T. Paoletti
• Localización: Artibus et historiae: an art anthology, ISSN 0391-9064, Nº. 21, 1990, págs. 39-69
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Donatello's stucco reliefs and bronze doors for the Old Sacristy at San Lorenzo were commissioned by Cosimo de' Medici and his brother, Lorenzo, to complete the decoration of the funerary chapel of their parents. The iconography of this sculpture establishes the sacristy as a family monument and clearly points to Cosimo's branch of the family as the ruling dynastic line of the Medici. The stylistic references in the doors to early Christian forms associate the Medici with the history of San Lorenzo, a building whose first dedication dates to the late fourth century, thus establishing their presence in this part of the city to which they had moved only in the late Trecento. The selection of saints on the Apostles' Doors metaphorically represents the Medici's importance in Florence and to the Papacy and, furthermore, suggests specific connections to the Council of Ferrara/Florence (1438-39), which Cosimo had financed.