Visitors can see Florence Baptistry mosaics up close
Visitors to one of Florence’s most iconic monuments are getting a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see its ceiling mosaics up close thanks to an innovative approach to a planned restoration effort
Visitors can see Florence Baptistry mosaics up close
Show all 16Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Visitors to one of Florence’s most iconic monuments — the Baptistry of San Giovanni, opposite the city’s Duomo — are getting a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see its ceiling mosaics up close thanks to an innovative approach to a planned restoration effort.
Rather than limit the public’s access during the six-year cleaning of the vault, officials have built a scaffolding platform for the art restorers that will also allow small numbers of visitors to see the ceiling mosaics at eye level.
“We had to turn this occasion into an opportunity to make it even more accessible and usable by the public through special routes that would bring visitors into direct contact with the mosaics,” said Samuele Caciagli, architect in charge of the restoration site.
In an interview with The Associated Press, he called the new scaffolding tour of the Baptistry vault “a unique opportunity that is unlikely to be repeated in the coming decades.”
Visits to the scaffolding platform, which sprouts like a mushroom from the floor of the Baptistry and reaches a height of 32 meters (105 feet) from the ground, begin Feb. 24 and must be reserved in advance.
The octagonal-shaped baptistry is one of the most visible monuments of Florence, known perhaps more for its exterior, with its alternating geometric pattern of white Carrara and green Prato marble and its three great bronze doors depicting biblical scenes.
Inside, however, are spectacular mosaic scenes of The Last Judgment and John the Baptist, dating from the 13th century and using some 10 million pieces of stone and glass over 1,000 square meters of dome and wall.
The six-year restoration effort, the first in over a century, involves conducting diagnostic studies on the current state of the mosaics and intervening where necessary. Planned works include addressing water infiltration from the roof, removing decades of grime and re-affixing the stones to prevent them from detaching.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.