PATRONAGE photos on Flickr

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Awards:

▪ Acceptance - 3rd Bardaf International Exhibition (FIAP Patronage: 2014/184), Section: "E. Cultural Heritage UNESCO"

Badshahi Mosque entrance, Lahore, Pakistan - April 2008 by Saffy H

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The Badshahi Mosque (Urdu: بادشاھی مسجد), or the 'Emperor's Mosque', was built in 1673 by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in Lahore, Pakistan. It is one of the city's best known landmarks, and a major tourist attraction epitomising the beauty and grandeur of the Mughal era.

Capable of accommodating over 55,000 worshipers, it is the second largest mosque in Pakistan, after the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad. The architecture and design of the Badshahi Masjid is closely related to the Jama Masjid in Delhi, India, which was built in 1648 by Aurangzeb's father and predecessor, emperor Shah Jahan.

Badshahi Masjid is one of the locations where Qari' Abdul Basit recited the Qur'an.[citation needed] The Imam-e-Kaaba (Sheikh Abdur-Rahman Al-Sudais of Saudi Arabia) has also led prayers in this mosque in 2007.

The mosque was built under the patronage of the sixth Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb Alamgir. It was completed in 1673 under the supervision of Aurangzeb's foster brother Muzaffar Hussain (also known as Fidaie Khan Koka) who was appointed governor of Lahore in May 1671 and held this post until 1675. He was also Master of Ordnance to the emperor. The construction of the mosque took about two years from May 1671 to April 1673. The mosque was built opposite the Lahore Fort, illustrating its stature in the Mughal Empire. In conjunction with the building of the mosque, a new gate was built at the fort, named Alamgiri Gate after the Emperor.

Badshahi Mosque was badly damaged and was misused during Sikh Rule. During the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the mosque was used as a stable for the army's horses.[1][2] They also would steal the jewels from the mosque, such as marble, rubies, gold, and other valuables. Muslims were not allowed to enter the mosque to worship; they were only given a small place outside the mosque where they could worship.

Even when the British took control of India, they would use the mosque for their military practices by using the mosque for gun practices, cannons, etc. Even when they sensed Muslim hate for the British, they demolished a large portion of the wall of the mosque so the Muslims could not use it as a kind of "fort" for anti-British reasons. After a while, they finally returned it to the Muslims as a good will gesture even though it was in terrible condition. It was then given to Badshahi Mosque Authority to restore it to its original glory.

From 1852 onwards, piecemeal repairs were carried out under the supervision of the Badshahi Mosque Authority. Extensive repairs were carried out from 1939 to 1960 at a cost of about 4.8 million rupees, which brought the mosque to its original shape and condition. The blueprint for the repairs was prepared by the late architect Nawab Zen Yar Jang Bahadur.

In 2000, the repair work of marble inlay in the main vault was repaired under the supervision of Saleem Anjum Qureshi.

On the occasion of the second Islamic Summit held at Lahore on February 22, 1974, thirty-nine heads of Muslim states offered their Friday prayers in the Badshahi Masjid, led by Maulana Abdul Qadir Azad, the 'Khatib' of the mosque.

Recently a small museum has also been added to the mosque complex. It contains relics of Muhammad (peace be upon him), his cousin Hazrat Ali (may Allah be pleased with him), and his daughter, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (may Allah be pleased with her). On August 14, 1947, the Pakistani people celebrated their independence from the British command.

Pakistan(Urdu: "land of the pure"), a country of 160 million people, is now the second most populous country in the Muslim world.

Hailed as the country's cultural capital, Lahore – also known as the "Heart of Pakistan" – is rich with many examples of Moghul architecture.[3]

Like the character of its founder, the mosque is bold, vast and majestic in its expression. It was the largest mosque in the world for a long time.

The interior has rich embellishment in stucco tracery (Manbatkari) and paneling with a fresco touch, all in bold relief, as well as marble inlay.

The exterior is decorated with stone carving as well as marble inlay on red sandstone, specially of loti form motifs in bold relief. The embellishment has Indo-Greek, Central Asian and Indian architectural influence both in technique and motifs.

The skyline is furnished by beautiful ornamental merlons inlaid with marble lining adding grace to the perimeter of the mosque. In its various architectural features like the vast square courtyard, the side aisles (dalans), the four corner minars, the projecting central transept of the prayer chamber and the grand entrance gate, is summed up the history of development of mosque architecture of the Muslim world over the thousand years prior to its construction in 1673.

The north enclosure wall of the mosque was laid close to the Ravi River bank, so a majestic gateway could not be provided on that side and, to keep the symmetry the gate had to be omitted on the south wall as well. Thus a four aiwan plan like the earlier Delhi Jamia Masjid could not be adopted here.

The walls were built with small kiln-burnt bricks laid in kankar, lime mortar (a kind of hydraulic lime) but have a veneer of red sandstone. The steps leading to the prayer chamber and its plinth are in variegated marble.

The prayer chamber is very deep and is divided into seven compartments by rich engraved arches carried on very heavy piers. Out of the seven compartments, three double domes finished in marble have superb curvature, whilst the rest have curvilinear domes with a central rib in their interior and flat roof above. In the eastern front aisle, the ceiling of the compartment is flat (Qalamdani) with a curved border (ghalatan) at the cornice level.

The original floor of the courtyard was laid with small kiln-burnt bricks laid in the Mussalah pattern. The present red sandstone flooring was laid during the last thorough repairs (1939-60). Similarly, the original floor of the prayer chamber was in cut and dressed bricks with marble and Sang-i-Abri lining forming Mussalah and was also replaced by marble Mussalah during the last repairs.

There are only two inscriptions in the mosque:

•one on the gateway

•the other of Kalimah in the prayer chamber under the main high vault.

•Courtyard: 528'-8" x 528'-4" (Area: 278,784 ft2), divided into two levels: the upper and the lower. In the latter, funeral prayers can also be offered.

•Prayer Chamber: 275'-8" x 83'-7" x 50'-6" high, with its main vault 37'-3" x 59'-4" high but with the merlons 74'-6". (Area: 22,825 ft2)

•Corner Minars: 67' in circumference, 176'-4" high are in four stages and have a contained staircase with 204 steps.

•Central Dome: Diameter 65' at bottom (at bulging 70'-6"); height 49'; pinnacle 24 ft and neck 15 ft high.

•Side Domes: Diameter 51'-6" (at bulging 54'-2"); height 32 ft; pinnacle 19 ft; neck 9'-6" high.

•Gateway: 66'-7" x 62'-10" x 65 high including domelets; vault 21'-6" x 32'-6" high. Its three sided approach steps are 22 in number.

•Side aisles (Dalans): 80 in number. Height above floor 23'-9"; plinth 2'-7".

•Central Tank: 50' x 50' x 3' deep (Area: 2,500 ft2)

Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgwick and Chuck Wein by Truus, Bob & Jan too!

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French postcard in the Collection Magie Noire by Editions Hazan, Paris, 1994, no. 6434. Photo: Burt Glinn / Magnum Photos. Caption: Andy Warhol in the London sewers, 1965.

Andy Warhol (1928-1987) was the 'Father of Pop Art' with his silk-screened pictures of Campbell's Soup cans and distorted images of Marilyn Monroe. He started directing films and most of his early work simply consisted of pointing the camera at something (a man asleep, the Empire State Building) and leaving it running, sometimes for hours. His films gradually grew more sophisticated, with scripts and soundtracks. They were generally performed by members of the Warhol "factory". In 1968, after a near-fatal shooting by an unstable fan, Warhol retired from direct involvement in filmmaking, and under former assistant Paul Morrissey, the Warhol films became increasingly commercial. Warhol spent the 1970s and 1980s as a major pop culture figure, constantly attending parties and providing patronage to younger artists.

Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola in 1928 in Pittsburgh, USA. His parents were Ondrej (Andrew) Varhola and Julia Zavackyová Varholová, ethnic Lemko immigrants from the village of Miková in the Austria-Hungary Empire (now Slovakia). Ondrej, whose surname was originally written as Varhola, changed the spelling to Warhola when he emigrated to the US. He worked as a construction worker and later as a coal miner. His father, who travelled much on business trips, died when Warhol was 13. During his teenage years, Andy suffered from several nervous breakdowns. He showed artistic talent early on and went to study applied art in Pittsburgh at the Carnegie Institute of Technology, now Carnegie Mellon University. There, he stood out by drawing two self-portraits showing him picking his nose (Upper Torso Boy Picking Nose and Full Figure Boy Picking Nose). In 1949, Andy graduated and dropped the letter 'a' from his last name. Warhol moved to New York, where he met Tina Fredericks, the art editor of Glamour Magazine. Warhol's early jobs were doing drawings for Glamour, such as the Success is a Job in New York and women's shoes. He also drew advertising for various magazines, including Vogue, and Harper's Bazaar, book jackets, and holiday greeting cards. In 1952, his first solo exhibition was held at the Hugo Gallery in New York, of drawings to illustrate stories by Truman Capote. He started illustrating books, beginning with Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Book of Etiquette. In 1956, he was included in his first group exhibition, Recent Drawings USA, held at the Museum of Modern Art, New York. By 1959, he was a successful advertising designer with an average annual income of $65000 and almost annual medals and other professional awards. In 1960, Warhol began to make his first paintings. They were based on comic strips in the likes of Dick Tracy, Popeye, and Superman. In the following years, Warhol started painting famous American products like Campbell's soup cans and Coca-Cola bottles in large formats. He managed to interest the influential gallery owner and art collector Leo Castelli in his work. He started using the silk-screen technique, not merely to create art using everyday commercial mass-produced items as his motif but to create even his own art as mass-produced items. Warhol preferred to become an emotionless machine. He set himself up as chief of a team of art workers who were engaged in making screen prints, films, books and magazines. This team operated in a studio near Union Square in New York. The studio was called the Factory because it actually housed a production line of paintings. The original Factory was located in an old cap factory at 231 East 47th street (fourth floor). This studio grew into a meeting place for artists, gays, transvestites, junkies and photographic models. Anyone with any artistic pretensions was welcome there.

After a few years, Andy Warhol moved his entourage to an office building across the street; 33 Union street West (sixth floor). This second Factory was called the Office by Warhol himself because it housed not only a studio but also the editorial office of Interview magazine, founded by Warhol. Warhol became known worldwide during the Factory years with his screen prints. He made screen prints of any subject that lent itself to it. Warhol's oeuvre largely draws on American popular culture. He painted and drew banknotes, cartoon images, food, women's shoes, celebrities and everyday objects. For him, these motifs represented American cultural values. Paul Morrisey managed to persuade Warhol to become the manager of a rock band. It would be a commercial success if Warhol combined his talent for generating media attention with a sensational rock group. Warhol was not immediately enthusiastic but after Morrisey's insistence, he relented. Morrisey had seen the Velvet Underground perform at cafe bizarre. After Warhol went to see, he was immediately excited. He saw a group standing with good looks who, while tourists sat drinking, sang about Heroine and SM. Warhol made the Velvet Underground part of his multimedia show Exploding Plastic Inevatible. He also produced The Velvet Underground's first album with Nico. He essentially lent his name to their work and observed them in the recording studio, while Lou Reed and later Tom Wilson mostly called the shots. The cover of the band's first album was Warhol's design: a banana with a peel that was actually a peelable sticker. On 3 June 1968, Valerie Solanas, a radical feminist author who hung around the Factory from time to time, turned up at the studio and shot Warhol and art critic Mario Amaya. Solanas had been rejected earlier that day at the Factory after she had requested the return of a script she had given Warhol for inspection. The script had apparently gone missing. Warhol was badly injured in the shooting and was even declared clinically dead in the hospital. He suffered the physical effects of the attack for the rest of his life and had to wear a corset to support his lower abdomen. The shooting had a major after-effect on Warhol's life and his art. The Factory became more tightly shielded and for many, this event marked the end of the Factory's wild years. That same day, Solanas turned herself in to the police and was arrested. Her explanation for this crime was that Warhol had become too much of an influence on her life. his incident is the subject of the film, I Shot Andy Warhol (Mary Harron, 1996).

Between 1963 and 1968, Andy Warhol was a prolific filmmaker. He made more than one hundred and sixty films, 60 of which are accessible. The films share similarities with his paintings, which also feature many repetitions and subtle variations of images. In the 1970s, Warhol banned the distribution of his films, but in the 1980s, after much insistence, he gave permission to restore the films. In many of his films, the usual projection speed was reduced from 24 frames to 16 frames per second. This is slightly different from usual slow-motion, where the film is actually shot at a higher speed and played back at normal speed. Warhol's technique gives the individual images more emphasis. One of his most famous films, and also his first, Sleep (1963), shows for eight hours a sleeping man, John Giorno, with whom he had a relationship. Warhol filmed for about three hours each time until the sun rose at five in the morning. Filming took a month. The film Kiss (1963) shows close-ups of kissing couples for 55 minutes. Blow Job (1963) is a continuous close-up of the face of a man (DeVeren Bookwalter) being orally satisfied off-screen. According to Warhol's later assistant, Gerard Malanga, the invisible role featured poet and filmmaker Willard Maas, although Warhol gave a different reading on this in his memoir 'Popism'. Warhol met Malanga in 1964, and they made Tarzan and Jane Regained... Sort of (1964). That year, Warhol also made a 99-minute portrait of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's famous curator Henry Geldzahler. During the filming, Warhol simply walked away. The film clearly shows how Geldzahler was bored and uncomfortable by the camera. By the end of the film, he collapsed completely. Also from 1964 is the film Eat, featuring Warhol's colleague and friend Robert Indiana, who is eating a mushroom very sedately and in a close-up. Another film, Empire (1964), consists of an eight-hour shot of the Empire State Building in New York at dusk. Warhol's role-playing film Vinyl is an adaptation of the dystopian Anthony Burgess novel 'A Clockwork Orange'. Further films depict impromptu encounters with Factory hustlers such as Brigid Berlin, Viva, Edie Sedgwick, Candy Darling, Holly Woodlawn, Ondine, Nico and Jackie Curtis. In the film Camp, legendary artist Jack Smith appears within the subculture. Many famous visitors to the Factory were put in front of the camera between 1963 and 1966, and filmed for 2 minutes and 45 seconds, the length of the standard roll of film. Usually, these were static portraits. By running the films more slowly, the expressions of the faces are greatly magnified. These shots resulted in about 500 films, called Screentests by Warhol. Among those portrayed are film star Dennis Hopper and pop star Lou Reed. The films were edited in various compositions and shown at Warhol exhibitions and in movie houses. Warhol's unorthodox approach is exemplified by Kitchen (1965). The actors do not know their roles by heart, but the screenplay is hidden in various places on the set. The scriptwriter whispers lines of dialogue from outside the frame. Snapshots are taken during filming. The set designer appears on the screen. Dialogue is drowned out by the sound of a mixer. There are long periods when nothing happens. There are two pairs of characters with the same names. Warhol was not interested in auctorial control but shifted the burden from the director to the actors and the shooting crew. He showed little interest in story intrigue, which he considered old-fashioned, or technical aspects of filmmaking. Warhol wanted to explore the borders between feigned action and the more authentic behaviour of non-actors, which is why he kept the camera running constantly: he didn't want to miss anything. In the summer of 1965, Andy Warhol met Paul Morrissey, who became his advisor and collaborator. Warhol's most successful film was Chelsea Girls (1966). The film was innovative as it consisted of two simultaneously projected 16-mm rolls of film with divergent narratives. From the projection booth, the sound level for one film was raised to clarify that story while it was lowered for the other, after which the reels were reversed. Chelsea Girls became the first underground film to be shown at a commercial theatre. Warhol also used this method of doubling the image in his screen prints of the early 1960s. The influence of film with multiple simultaneous layers and stories is noticeable in modern productions like Mike Figgis's Timecode and, indirectly, the first seasons of 24. Other important films include My Hustler (1965) and Lonesome Cowboys (1968), a homoerotic pseudo-Western. Blue Movie, a film in which Warhol's 'superstar' Viva has sex with a man for 33 minutes, was Warhol's last film of his own. After the film caused a scandal because of its liberal approach to sexuality, Viva managed to block its public screening for a long time. The film was not shown again in New York until 2005, for the first time in 30 years.

Compared to Andy Warhol's provocative work in the 1960s, the 1970s were artistically less productive, although Warhol became much more businesslike. He retired as a film director and left filmmaking to Paul Morrissey. The latter steered the approach to Warhol films more and more in the direction of ordinary B-movies with a clear narrative, for example, Flesh, Trash and Heat. These films, as well as the later films Blood for Dracula and Flesh for Frankenstein, were much more normal than anything Warhol had ever made himself as a director. The star of these films was Joe Dallesandro, who was actually a Morrissey star rather than a true Andy Warhol superstar. Another film that caused a lot of furore as a Warhol film was Bad. starring Carroll Baker and Perry King. This film was actually directed by Jed Johnson. To increase the success of the later films, all of Warhol's earlier avant-garde films were withdrawn from circulation around 1972. Warhol founded Interview magazine in 1969. He resumed painting in 1972, although it was primarily celebrity portraits. According to his assistant during his later years, Bob Colacello, Warhol mainly sought out wealthy people from whom he could secure portrait commissions, such as Mick Jagger, Liza Minnelli, John Lennon, Diana Ross, Brigitte Bardot and Michael Jackson, as well as lesser-known bank executives and collectors. In 1975 published his book 'The Philosophy of Andy Warhol', in which he explained his down-to-earth ideas about art and life. Incidentally, he appeared in films and TV shows. When guesting on The Love Boat (1977), he was nervous about the experience and turned to his castmate Marion Ross, who calmed him down and offered some advice on how to act. In 1976, Warhol began a daily routine. Every morning at 9 am, he would call Pat Hackett, whom he had hired to keep track of his expenses. What was initially supposed to be just a morning bookkeeping session soon turned into an extremely intimate exchange of private experiences between the two of them. Warhol, who was "addicted to the phone anyway", told Hackett about the rather delicate details of the New York scene and celebrities, a subject that had interested him since childhood. Like his time capsules, the conversations were for capturing a picture of the times. After his death, Hackett released some of these notes in the book 'The Andy Warhol Diaries'. In 2022, this book was made into a Netflix documentary. Andy Warhol worked for several years with Jean-Michel Basquiat a young artist in whom he recognised much of himself. The collaboration was equal, Warhol was past his prime and Basquiat had already established his name. This equality allowed them to collaborate on some 140 works, some of which were exhibited in a duo exhibition at the New York gallery Tony Shafrazi in 1985. The ensuing New York Times review made Basquiat Warhol's mascot after which their collaboration and also their friendship cooled. Warhol died in 1987 at the age of 58 in New York. He was recovering from a routine operation on his gallbladder when he died of cardiac arrest in his sleep. Hospital staff had administered sleeping pills to him after the operation and had not sufficiently monitored his well-being. Consequently, lawyers for Warhol's next of kin sued the hospital for negligence. Warhol constantly delayed medical treatment because he was afraid of hospitals and disliked doctors. Warhol was buried at St John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cemetery in Bethel Park, south of Pittsburgh. Yoko Ono was among those who gave a farewell address at his funeral. International auction house Sotheby's took nine days to auction off Warhol's immense collection of art and 'knickknacks'. The gross proceeds of this auction were about US$20 million. In 1990, Lou Reed and John Cale made a CD album called 'Songs for Drella' as a tribute to Warhol with 15 songs about Warhol's life.

Sources: Herman Hou (IMDb), Michael Brooke (IMDb), Wikipedia (Dutch) and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Série de Florença - Florence's (Firenze's) series - 15-01-2009 - IMG_20090114_9999_105 by Flávio Cruvinel Brandão

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La Cattedrale di Santa Maria Fiore - Duomo, Firenze (Florença)

www.google.com/maps?q=florença%20italia&layer=c&...

Following, a text, in english, from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia:

The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (English: Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower) is the cathedral church of Florence, Italy. The Duomo, as it is ordinarily called, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris.

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile. The three buildings are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site covering the historic centre of Florence and are a major attraction to tourists visiting the region of Tuscany. The basilica is one of Italy's largest churches, and until development of new structural materials in the modern era, the dome was the largest in the world. It remains the largest brick dome ever constructed.

The cathedral is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Florence, whose archbishop is currently Giuseppe Betori.

he Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore was built on the site of an earlier cathedral dedicated to Saint Reparata.[1] The ancient building, founded in the early 5th century and having undergone many repairs, was crumbling with age, as attested in the 14th century Nuova Cronica of Giovanni Villani,[2] and was no longer large enough to serve the growing population of the city.[2] Other major Tuscan cities had undertaken ambitious reconstructions of their cathedrals during the Late Medieval period, as seen at Pisa and particularly Siena where the enormous proposed extensions were never completed.

The new church was designed by Arnolfo di Cambio and approved by city council in 1294. Arnolfo di Cambio was also architect of the church of Santa Croce and the Palazzo Vecchio. He designed three wide naves ending under the octagonal dome, with the middle nave covering the area of Santa Reparata. The first stone was laid on September 9, 1296 by Cardinal Valeriana, the first papal legate ever sent to Florence. The building of this vast project was to last 170 years, the collective efforts of several generations; Arnolfo's plan for the eastern end, although maintained in concept, was greatly expanded in size.

After Arnolfo died in 1302, work on the cathedral slowed for the following thirty years. The project obtained new impetus, when the relics of Saint Zenobius were discovered in 1330 in Santa Reparata. In 1331, the Arte della Lana, the [=[Guilds of Florence|guild of wool merchants]], took over exclusive patronage for the construction of the cathedral and in 1334 appointed Giotto to oversee the work. Assisted by Andrea Pisano, Giotto continued di Cambio's design. His major accomplishment was the building of the campanile. When Giotto died in 1337, Andrea Pisano continued the building until work was again halted due to the Black PDeath in 1348.

In 1349 work resumed on the cathedral under a series of architects, commencing with Francesco Talenti, who finished the campanile and enlarged the overall project to include the apse and the side chapels. In 1359 Talenti was succeeded by Giovanni di Lapo Ghini (1360–1369) who divided the center nave in four square bays. Other architects were Alberto Arnoldi, Giovanni d'Ambrogio, Neri di Fioravante and Andrea Orcagna. By 1375 the old church Santa Reparata was pulled down. The nave was finished by 1380, and by 1418 only the dome remained incomplete.

On 19 August 1418, the Arte della Lana announced a structural design competition for erecting Neri's dome. The two main competitors were two master goldsmiths, Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi, who was supported by Cosimo de Medici. Ghiberti had been winner of a competition for a pair of bronze doors for the Baptistery in 1401 and lifelong competition between the two remained acute. Brunelleschi won and received the commission.[3]

Ghiberti, appointed coadjutator, was drawing a salary equal to Brunelleschi's and, though neither was awarded the announced prize of 200 florins, would potentially earn equal credit, while spending most of his time on other projects. When Brunelleschi became ill, or feigned illness, the project was briefly in the hands of Ghiberti. But Ghiberti soon had to admit that the whole project was beyond him. In 1423 Brunelleschi was back in charge and took over sole responsibility.[4]

Work started on the dome in 1420 and was completed in 1436. The cathedral was consecrated by Pope Eugene IV on March 25, 1436 (the first day of the year according to the Florentine calendar). It was the first 'octagonal' dome in history to be built without a temporary wooden supporting frame: the Roman Pantheon, a circular dome, was built in 117–128 AD with support structures. It was one of the most impressive projects of the Renaissance. During the consecration service in 1436, Guillaume Dufay's similarly unique motet Nuper rosarum flores was performed. The structure of this motet was strongly influenced by the structure of the dome.

The decoration of the exterior of the cathedral, begun in the 14th century, was not completed until 1887, when the polychrome marble façade was completed to the design of Emilio De Fabris. The floor of the church was relaid in marble tiles in the 16th century.

The exterior walls are faced in alternate vertical and horizontal bands of polychrome marble from Carrara (white), Prato (green), Siena (red), Lavenza and a few other places. These marble bands had to repeat the already existing bands on the walls of the earlier adjacent baptistery the Battistero di San Giovanni and Giotto's Bell Tower. There are two lateral doors, the Doors of the Canonici (south side) and the Door of the Mandorla (north side) with sculptures by Nanni di Banco, Donatello, and Jacopo della Quercia. The six lateral windows, notable for their delicate tracery and ornaments, are separated by pilasters. Only the four windows closest to the transept admit light; the other two are merely ornamental. The clerestory windows are round, a common feature in Italian Gothic.

During its long history, this cathedral has been the seat of the Council of Florence (1439), heard the preachings of Girolamo Savonarola and witnessed the murder of Giuliano di Piero de' Medici on Sunday, 26 April 1478 (with Lorenzo Il Magnifico barely escaping death) in the Pazzi conspiracy.

Exterior

Plan and structure

The cathedral of Florence is built as a basilica, having a wide central nave of four square bays, with an aisle on either side. The chancel and transepts are of identical polygonal plan, separated by two smaller polygonal chapels. The whole plan forms a Latin cross. The nave and aisles are separated by wide pointed Gothic arches resting on composite piers.

The dimensions of the building are enormous: length 153 metres (502 ft), width 38 metres (124 ft), width at the crossing 90 metres (295 ft). The height of the arches in the aisles is 23 metres (75 ft). The height from pavement to the opening of the lantern in the dome is also 90 metres (295 ft).

Dome

By the beginning of the fifteenth century, after a hundred years of construction, the structure was still missing its dome. The basic features of the dome had been designed by Arnolfo di Cambio in 1296. His brick model, 4.6 metres (15 ft) high 9.2 metres (30 ft) long, was standing in a side isle of the unfinished building, and had long ago become sacrosanct.[5] It called for an octagonal dome higher and wider than any that had ever been built, with no external buttresses to keep it from spreading and falling under its own weight.

The Duomo viewed from the heights of Piazzale Michelangelo

The commitment to reject traditional Gothic buttresses had been made when Neri di Fioravante's model was chosen over a competing one by Giovanni di Lapo Ghini.[6] That architectural choice, in 1367, was one of the first events of the Italian Renaissance, marking a break with the Medieval Gothic style and a return to the classic Mediterranean dome. Italian architects regarded Gothic flying buttresses as ugly makeshifts, in addition to being a style favored by central Italy's traditional enemies to the north.[7] Neri's model depicted a massive inner dome, open at the top to admit light, like Rome's Pantheon, but enclosed in a thinner outer shell, partly supported by the inner dome, to keep out the weather. It was to stand on an unbuttressed octagonal drum. Neri's dome would need an internal defense against spreading (hoop stress), but none had yet been designed.

The building of such a masonry dome posed many technical problems. Brunelleschi looked to the great dome of the Pantheon in Rome for solutions. The dome of the Pantheon is a single shell of concrete, the formula for which had long since been forgotten. A wooden form had held the Pantheon dome aloft while its concrete set, but for the height and breadth of the dome designed by Neri, starting 52 metres (171 ft) above the floor and spanning 44 metres (144 ft), there was not enough timber in Tuscany to build the scaffolding and forms.[8] Brunelleschi chose to follow such design and employed a double shell, made of sandstone and marble. Brunelleschi would have to build the dome out of bricks, due to its light weight compared to stone and easier to form, and with nothing under it during construction. To illustrate his proposed structural plan, he constructed a wooden and brick model with the help of Donatello and Nanni di Banco and still displayed in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo. The model served as a guide for the craftsmen, but was intentionally incomplete, so as to ensure Brunelleschi's control over the construction.

Brunelleschi's solutions were ingenious. The spreading problem was solved by a set of four internal horizontal stone and iron chains, serving as barrel hoops, embedded within the inner dome: one each at the top and bottom, with the remaining two evenly spaced between them. A fifth chain, made of wood, was placed between the first and second of the stone chains. Since the dome was octagonal rather than round, a simple chain, squeezing the dome like a barrel hoop, would have put all its pressure on the eight corners of the dome. The chains needed to be rigid octagons, stiff enough to hold their shape, so as not to deform the dome as they held it together.

Each of Brunelleschi's stone chains was built like an octagonal railroad track with parallel rails and cross ties, all made of sandstone beams 43 centimetres (17 in) in diameter and no more than 2.3 metres (7.5 ft) long. The rails were connected end-to-end with lead-glazed iron splices. The cross ties and rails were notched together and then covered with the bricks and mortar of the inner dome. The cross ties of the bottom chain can be seen protruding from the drum at the base of the dome. The others are hidden. Each stone chain was supposed to be reinforced with a standard iron chain made of interlocking links, but a magnetic survey conducted in the 1970s failed to detect any evidence of iron chains, which if they exist are deeply embedded in the thick masonry walls. He was also able to accomplish this by setting vertical "ribs" on the corners of the octagon curving towards the center point. The ribs had slits, where platforms could be erected out of and work could progressively continue as they worked up,a system for scaffolding.[9]

A circular masonry dome, such as that of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul can be built without supports, called centering, because each course of bricks is a horizontal arch that resists compression. In Florence, the octagonal inner dome was thick enough for an imaginary circle to be embedded in it at each level, a feature that would hold the dome up eventually, but could not hold the bricks in place while the mortar was still wet. Brunelleschi used a herringbone brick pattern to transfer the weight of the freshly laid bricks to the nearest vertical ribs of the non-circular dome.[10]

The outer dome was not thick enough to contain embedded horizontal circles, being only 60 centimetres (2 ft) thick at the base and 30 centimetres (1 ft) thick at the top. To create such circles, Brunelleschi thickened the outer dome at the inside of its corners at nine different elevations, creating nine masonry rings, which can be observed today from the space between the two domes. To counteract hoop stress, the outer dome relies entirely on its attachment to the inner dome at its base; it has no embedded chains.[11]

A modern understanding of physical laws and the mathematical tools for calculating stresses was centuries into the future. Brunelleschi, like all cathedral builders, had to rely on intuition and whatever he could learn from the large scale models he built. To lift 37,000 tons of material, including over 4 million bricks, he invented hoisting machines and lewissons for hoisting large stones. These specially designed machines and his structural innovations were Brunelleschi's chief contribution to architecture. Although he was executing an aesthetic plan made half a century earlier, it is his name, rather than Neri's, that is commonly associated with the dome.

Brunelleschi's ability to crown the dome with a lantern was questioned and he had to undergo another competition. He was declared the winner over his competitors Lorenzo Ghiberti and Antonio Ciaccheri. His design was for an octagonal lantern with eight radiating buttresses and eight high arched windows (now on display in the Museum Opera del Duomo). Construction of the lantern was begun a few months before his death in 1446. Then, for 15 years, little progress was possible, due to alterations by several architects. The lantern was finally completed by Brunelleschi's friend Michelozzo in 1461. The conical roof was crowned with a gilt copper ball and cross, containing holy relics, by Verrocchio in 1469. This brings the total height of the dome and lantern to 114.5 metres (375 ft). This copper ball was struck by lightning on 17 July 1600 and fell down. It was replaced by an even larger one two years later.

The commission for this bronze ball [atop the lantern] went to the sculptor Andrea del Verrocchio, in whose workshop there was at this time a young apprentice named Leonardo da Vinci. Fascinated by Filippo's [Brunelleschi's] machines, which Verrocchio used to hoist the ball, Leonardo made a series of sketches of them and, as a result, is often given credit for their invention.[12]

Leonardo might have also participated in the design of the bronze ball, as stated in the G manuscript of Paris "Remember the way we soldered the ball of Santa Maria del Fiore".[13]

The decorations of the drum gallery by Baccio d'Agnolo were never finished after being disapproved by no one less than Michelangelo.

A huge statue of Brunelleschi now sits outside the Palazzo dei Canonici in the Piazza del Duomo, looking thoughtfully up towards his greatest achievement, the dome that would forever dominate the panorama of Florence. It is still the largest masonry dome in the world.[14]

The building of the cathedral had started in 1296 with the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and was completed in 1469 with the placing of Verrochio's copper ball atop the lantern. But the façade was still unfinished and would remain so until the nineteenth century.

Façade

Façade of the cathedral

The original façade, designed by Arnolfo di Cambio and usually attributed to Giotto, was actually begun twenty years after Giotto's death.[citation needed] A mid-15th century pen-and-ink drawing of this so-called Giotto's façade is visible in the Codex Rustici, and in the drawing of Bernardino Poccetti in 1587, both on display in the Museum of the Opera del Duomo. This façade was the collective work of several artists, among them Andrea Orcagna and Taddeo Gaddi. This original façade was only completed in its lower portion and then left unfinished. It was dismantled in 1587-1588 by the Medici court architect Bernardo Buontalenti, ordered by Grand Duke Francesco I de' Medici, as it appeared totally outmoded in Renaissance times. Some of the original sculptures are on display in the Museum Opera del Duomo, behind the cathedral. Others are now in the Berlin Museum and in the Louvre. The competition for a new façade turned into a huge corruption scandal. The wooden model for the façade of Buontalenti is on display in the Museum Opera del Duomo. A few new designs had been proposed in later years but the models (of Giovanni Antonio Dosio, Giovanni de' Medici with Alessandro Pieroni and Giambologna) were not accepted. The façade was then left bare until the 19th century.

Main portal of the cathedral

In 1864, a competition was held to design a new façade and was won by Emilio De Fabris (1808–1883) in 1871. Work began in 1876 and completed in 1887. This neo-gothic façade in white, green and red marble forms a harmonious entity with the cathedral, Giotto's bell tower and the Baptistery, but some think it is excessively decorated.

The whole façade is dedicated to the Mother of Christ.

Main portal

The three huge bronze doors date from 1899 to 1903. They are adorned with scenes from the life of the Madonna. The mosaics in the lunettes above the doors were designed by Niccolò Barabino. They represent (from left to right): Charity among the founders of Florentine philanthropic institutions, Christ enthroned with Mary and John the Baptist, and Florentine artisans, merchants and humanists. The pediment above the central portal contains a half-relief by Tito Sarrocchi of Mary enthroned holding a flowered scepter. Giuseppe Cassioli sculpted the right hand door.

On top of the façade is a series of niches with the twelve Apostles with, in the middle, the Madonna with Child. Between the rose window and the tympanum, there is a gallery with busts of great Florentine artists.

Interior

The Gothic interior is vast and gives an empty impression. The relative bareness of the church corresponds with the austerity of religious life, as preached by Girolamo Savonarola.

Many decorations in the church have been lost in the course of time, or have been transferred to the Museum Opera del Duomo, such as the magnificent cantorial pulpits (the singing galleries for the choristers) of Luca della Robbia and Donatello.

As this cathedral was built with funds from the public, some important works of art in this church honour illustrious men and military leaders of Florence:

Dante Before the City of Florence by Domenico di Michelino (1465). This painting is especially interesting because it shows us, apart from scenes of the Divine Comedy, a view on Florence in 1465, a Florence such as Dante himself could not have seen in his time.

Funerary Monument to Sir John Hawkwood by Paolo Uccello (1436). This almost monochrome fresco, transferred on canvas in the 19th c., is painted in terra verde, a color closest to the patina of bronze.

Equestrian statue of Niccolò da Tolentino by Andrea del Castagno (1456). This fresco, transferred on canvas in the 19th c., in the same style as the previous one, is painted in a color resembling marble. However, it is more richly decorated and gives more the impression of movement. Both frescoes portray the condottieri as heroic figures riding triumphantly. Both painters had problems when applying in painting the new rules of perspective to foreshortening: they used two unifying points, one for the horse and one for the pedestal, instead a single unifying point.

Busts of Giotto (by Benedetto da Maiano), Brunelleschi (by Buggiano - 1447), Marsilio Ficino, and Antonio Squarcialupi (a most famous organist). These busts all date from the 15th and the 16th century.

Above the main door is the colossal clock face with fresco portraits of four Prophets or Evangelists by Paolo Uccello (1443). This one-handed liturgical clock shows the 24 hours of the hora italica (Italian time), a period of time ending with sunset at 24 hours. This timetable was used till the 18th century. This is one of the few clocks from that time that still exist and are in working order.

The church is particularly notable for its 44 stained glass windows, the largest undertaking of this kind in Italy in the 14th and 15th century. The windows in the aisles and in the transept depict saints from the Old and the New Testament, while the circular windows in the drum of the dome or above the entrance depict Christ and Mary. They are the work of the greatest Florentine artists of their times, such as Donatello, Lorenzo Ghiberti, Paolo Uccello and Andrea del Castagno.

Christ crowning Mary as Queen, the stained-glass circular window above the clock, with a rich range of coloring, was designed by Gaddo Gaddi in the early 14th century.

Donatello designed the stained-glass window (Coronation of the Virgin) in the drum of the dome (the only one that can be seen from the nave).

The beautiful funeral monument of Antonio d'Orso (1323), bishop of Florence, was made by Tino da Camaino, the most important funeral sculptor of his time.

The monumental crucifix, behind the Bishop's Chair at the high altar, is by Benedetto da Maiano (1495–1497). The choir enclosure is the work of the famous Bartolommeo Bandinelli. The ten-paneled bronze doors of the sacristy were made by Luca della Robbia, who has also two glazed terracotta works inside the sacristy: Angel with Candlestick and Resurrection of Christ.

In the back of the middle of the three apses is the altar of Saint Zanobius, first bishop of Florence. Its silver shrine, a masterpiece of Ghiberti, contains the urn with his relics. The central compartment shows us one his miracles, the reviving of a dead child. Above this shrine is the painting Last Supper by the lesser-known Giovanni Balducci. There was also a glass-paste mosaic panel The Bust of Saint Zanobius by the 16th century miniaturist Monte di Giovanni, but it is now on display in the Museum Opera del Duomo.

Many decorations date from the 16th-century patronage of the Grand Dukes, such as the pavement in colored marble, attributed to Baccio d'Agnolo and Francesco da Sangallo (1520–26). Some pieces of marble from the façade were used, topside down, in the flooring (as was shown by the restoration of the floor after the 1966 flooding).

It was suggested that the interior of the 45 metre (147 ft) wide dome should be covered with a mosaic decoration to make the most of the available light coming through the circular windows of the drum and through the lantern. Brunelleschi had proposed the vault to glimmer with resplendent gold, but his death in 1446 put an end to this project, and the walls of the dome were whitewashed. Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici decided to have the dome painted with a representation of The Last Judgment. This enormous work, 3,600 metres² (38 750 ft²) of painted surface, was started in 1568 by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari and would last till 1579. The upper portion, near the lantern, representing The 24 Elders of Apoc. 4 was finished by Vasari before his death in 1574. Federico Zuccari and a number of collaborators, such as Domenico Cresti, finished the other portions: (from top to bottom) Choirs of Angels; Christ, Mary and Saints; Virtues, Gifts of the Holy Spirit and Beatitudes; and at the bottom of the cuppola: Capital Sins and Hell. These frescoes are considered Zuccari's greatest work. But the quality of the work is uneven because of the input of different artists and the different techniques. Vasari had used true fresco, while Zuccari had painted in secco. During the restoration work ended in 1995, the entire pictorial cycle of the The Last Judgment was photographed with specially designed equipment and all the information collected in a catalogue. All the restoration information along with reconstructed images of the frescos were stored and managed in the Thesaurus Florentinus computer system.

Crypt

The cathedral underwent difficult excavations between 1965 and 1974. The subterranean vaults were used for the burial of Florentine bishops throughout the centuries.

Recently[when?] the archaeological history of this huge area was reconstructed through the work of Dr Franklin Toker: remains of Roman houses, an early Christian pavement, ruins of the former cathedral of Santa Reparata and successive enlargements of this church. Close to the entrance, in the part of the crypt open to the public, is the tomb of Brunelleschi. While its location is prominent, the actual tomb is simple and humble. That the architect was permitted such a prestigious burial place is proof of the high esteem he was given by the Florentines.

Also buried in the former cathedral of Santa Reparata was Conrad II of Italy.

A seguir, um texto, em português, da Wikipédia a Enciclopédia Livre:

A Basílica di Santa Maria del Fiore é a catedral, ou Duomo[1], da Arquidiocese da Igreja Católica Romana de Florença. Notabilizada por sua monumental cúpula - obra do celebrado arquiteto renascentista Brunelleschi - e pelo campanário, de Giotto, é uma das obras da arte gótica e da primeira renascença italiana, considerada de fundamenal importância para a História da Arquitetura, registro da riqueza e do poder da capital da Toscana nos séculos XIII e XIV. Seu nome (cuja tradução é Santa Maria da Flor) parece referir-se ao lilium, símbolo de Florença, mas, documento [2] do Século XV, por outro lado, informa que “flor”, no caso, refere a Cristo.

História

O Duomo de Florença, como o vemos hoje, é o resultado de um trabalho que se estendeu por seis séculos. Seu projeto básico foi elaborado por Arnolfo di Cambio no final do século XIII, sua cúpula é obra de Filippo Brunelleschi, e sua fachada teve de esperar até o século XIX para ser concluída. Ao longo deste tempo uma série de intervenções estruturais e decorativas no exterior e interior enriqueceriam o monumento, dentre elas a construção de duas sacristias e a execução de esculturas e afrescos por Paolo Uccello, Andrea del Castagno, Giorgio Vasari e Federico Zuccari, autor do Juízo Final no interior da cúpula. Foi construída no lugar da antiga catedral dedicada a Santa Reparata, que funcionou durante nove séculos até ser demolida completamente em 1375.

Em 1293, durante a República Florentina, o notário Ser Mino de Cantoribus sugeriu a substituição de Santa Reparata por uma catedral ainda maior e mais magnificente, de tal forma que "a indústria e o poder do homem não pudessem inventar ou mesmo tentar nada maior ou mais belo", e estava preparado para finaciar a construção. Entretanto, esperava-se que a população contribuísse, e todos os testamentos passaram a incluir uma cláusula de doação para as obras. O projeto foi confiado a Arnolfo em 1294, e ele cerimoniosamente lançou a pedra fundamental em 8 de setembro de 1296.

Arnolfo trabalhou na construção até 1302, ano de sua morte, e embora o estilo dominante da época fosse o gótico, seu projeto foi concebido com uma grandiosiddade clássica. Arnolfo só pôde trabalhar em duas capelas e na fachada, que ele teve tempo de completar e decorar só em parte. Com a morte do arquiteto o trabalho de construção sofreu uma parada. Um novo impulso foi dado quando em 1330 foi descoberto o corpo de São Zenóbio em Santa Reparata, que ainda estava parcialmente de pé. Giotto di Bondone então foi indicado supervisor em 1334, e mesmo que não tivesse muito tempo de vida (morreu em 1337) ele decidiu concentrar suas energias na construção do campanário. Giotto foi sucedido por Andrea Pisano até 1348, quando a peste reduziu a população da cidade de 90 mil para 45 mil habitantes.

Sob Francesco Talenti, supervisor entre 1349 e 1359, o campanário foi concluído e preparou-se um novo projeto para o Duomo, com a colaboração de Giovanni di Lapo Ghini: a nave central foi dividida em quatro espaços quadrangulares com duas alas retangulares, reduzindo o número de janelas planejadas por Arnolfo. Em 1370 a construção já estava bem adiantada, o mesmo se dando com o novo projeto para a abside, que foi circundada por tribunas que amplificaram o trifólio de Arnolfo. Por fim Santa Reparata terminou de ser demolida em 1375. Ao mesmo tempo continuou-se o trabalho de revestimento externo com mármores e decoração em torno das entradas laterais, a Porta dei Canonici (sul) e a Porta della Mandorla (norte), esta coroada com um relevo da Assunção, última obra de Nanni di Banco.

Contudo, o problema da cúpula ainda não fora resolvido. Brunelleschi fez seu primeiro projeto em 1402, mas o manteve em segredo. Em 1418, a Opera del Duomo, a centenária empresa administradora dos trabalhos na Catedral, anunciou um concurso que Brunelleschi haveria de vencer, mas o trabalho não iniciaria senão dois anos mais tarde, continuando até 1434. A Catedral foi consagrada pelo Papa Eugênio IV em 25 de março (o Ano Novo florentino) de 1436, 140 anos depois do início da construção. Os arremates que ainda esperavam conclusão eram a lanterna da cúpula (colocada em 1461) e o revestimento externo com mármores brancos de Carrara, verdes de Prato, e vermelhos de Siena, de acordo com o projeto original de Arnolfo.

A fachada

A fachada original, desenhada por Arnolfo di Cambio, só foi começada em meados do século XV, realizada de fato por vários artistas em uma obra coletiva, mas de toda forma só foi terminada até o terço inferior. Esta parte foi desmantelada por ordem de Francesco I de Medici entre 1587 e 1588, pois era considerada totalmente fora de moda naquela altura. O concurso que foi aberto para a criação de uma nova fachada acabou em um escândalo, e os desenhos subseqüentes que foram apresentados não foram aceitos. A fachada ficou, então, despida até o século XIX, mas estatuária e ornamentos originais sobrevivem no Museu Opera del Duomo e em museus de Paris e Berlim.

Em 1864, Emilio de Fabris venceu um concurso para uma nova fachada, que é a que vemos hoje, um enorme e magistral trabalho de mosaico em mármores coloridos em estilo neogótico, com uma volumetria dinâmica e harmoniosa. Pronta em 1887, foi dedicada à Virgem Maria, e é ricamente adornada com estatuária de elegante e austero desenho. Em 1903 terminaram-se as monumentais portas de bronze, com várias cenas em relevo e outras decorações.

Interior

Sua planta é basilical, com três naves, divididas por grandes arcos suportados por colunas monumentais. Tem 153 metros de comprido por 38 metros de largo, e 90 metros no transepto. Seus arcos se elevam até 23 metros de altura, e o cume da cúpula, a 90 metros.

Suas decorações internas são austeras, e muitas se perderam no curso dos séculos. Alguns elementos acharam abrigo no Museu Opera del Duomo, como os coros de Luca della Robbia e Donatello. Subsistem também os monumentos a Dante, a John Hawkwood, a Niccolò da Tolentino, a Antonio d'Orso, e os bustos de Giotto (de Benedetto da Maiano), Brunelleschi (de Buggiano - 1447), Marsilio Ficino, e Antonio Squarcialupi.

Sobre a porta de entrada há um relógio colossal com decoração em pintura de Paolo Uccello, e acertado de acordo com a hora italica, uma divisão do tempo comumente empregada na Itália até o século XVIII, que dava o por-do-sol como o início do dia.

Os vitrais são os maiores em seu gênero na Itália entre os séculos XIV e XV, com imagens de santos do Velho e Novo Testamento. O crucifixo é obra de Benedetto da Maiano, a talha do coro de Bartolommeo Bandinelli, e as portas da sacristia são de Luca della Robbia.

Italy - Tuscany - Florence - Abduction of a Sabine Woman 01_DSC9249 by Darrell Godliman

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My Website : Twitter : Facebook : Instagram : Photocrowd

Another sculpture from the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence, this time it's the 'Abduction of a Sabine Woman' by Giambologna. This sculpture is slightly odd to me as the sensual forms seem rather at odds with the subject matter. It makes you wonder if the sculptor wasn't being a bit exploitative of the subject matter in order to get a commission / sale.......

Click here to see more photos from Tuscany and Florence : www.flickr.com/photos/darrellg/albums/72157714689304067

From Wikipedia : "Abduction of a Sabine Woman (or Rape of the Sabine Women) is a large and complex marble statue by the Flemish sculptor and architect Giambologna (Johannes of Boulogne). It was completed between 1579 and 1583 when Giambologna was a student at the prestigious Accademia delle Arti del Disegno, Rome, under he patronage of Cosimo I de' Medici. Giambologna achieved widespread fame in his lifetime, and this work is widely considered his masterpiece. It has been in the Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence, since August 1582.

The statue is composed in the figura serpentina style. It depicts three nude figures: a young man in the center who has seemingly taken a woman from an despairing older man below him. It is ostensibly based on the rape of the Sabine Women incident from the early history of Rome when the city contained relatively few women, leading to their men committing a raptio (large-scale abduction; the word is rendered as rape in archaic or literary English) of young women from nearby towns and cities."

Italy / Tuscany - Val d'Orcia by Michael Kemper

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Italien / Toskana - Val d'Orcia

near Pienza

bei Pienza

The Val d'Orcia or Valdorcia (Italian pronunciation: [ˌvalˈdortʃa]) is a region of Tuscany, central Italy, which extends from the hills south of Siena to Monte Amiata. Its gentle, cultivated hills are occasionally broken by gullies and by picturesque towns and villages such as Pienza (rebuilt as an "ideal town" in the 15th century under the patronage of Pope Pius II), Radicofani (home to the notorious brigand-hero Ghino di Tacco) and Montalcino (the Brunello di Montalcino is counted among the most prestigious of Italian wines). Its landscape has been depicted in works of art from Renaissance painting to modern photography.

World Heritage

The Val d'Orcia was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 2004.

Orcia DOC

Within the Val d'Orcia is a strip of land following the Orcia river between the DOCG zones of Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Here Sangiovese and Trebbiano-based wines are produced under the Orcia Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC) status.

The DOC red wine is composed of at least 60 percent Sangiovese with other local varieties, such as Abrusco, permitted to fill in the remainder of the blend. The dry white wine and Vin Santo style DOC wines are composed of at least 50 percent Trebbiano filled out with other local varieties. All grapes destined for DOC wine production are limited to a maximum harvest yield of 10 tonnes/hectare, with the finished wines required to have a minimum alcohol level of at least 12 percent.

Historic railways heritage site

Val d'Orcia is crossed by a 19th-century railway, whose tracks, stations and tunnels are continually maintained in working order, the normal railway service provided by the state having been discontinued in 1994. The scenic line connects the small town of Asciano with Monte Antico using historic steam engines and carriages on selected dates throughout the year, to serve visitors to local festivals.

Film locations

Val d'Orcia has been a location for many well-known films, including:

8½ by Federico Fellini (1963)

Brother Sun, Sister Moon by Franco Zeffirelli (1972)

Nostalghia by Andrei Tarkovsky (1983)

The English Patient by Anthony Minghella (1996)

Stealing Beauty by Bernardo Bertolucci (1996)

A Midsummer Night's Dream by Michael Hoffman (1999)

Gladiator by Ridley Scott (2000)

In literature

The book War in Val d'Orcia by Iris Origo (1902–1988) is a detailed, first-hand account of the World War II events of 1943–1944 in the region, written as a diary in English.

(Wikipedia)

Die Landschaft des Val d’Orcia (Orciatal) liegt im südlichen Teil der Provinz Siena in der Toskana, Italien. Der Name ist vom Fluss Orcia abgeleitet. Seit 2004 gehört das Val d’Orcia zum Weltkulturerbe der UNESCO.

Beschreibung

Das Tal ist Teil des landwirtschaftlichen Hinterlandes von Siena, welches bei seiner Besiedlung durch den Stadtstaat im 14. und 15. Jahrhundert umgestaltet und entwickelt wurde, um das idealisierte Modell einer guten Regierung widerzuspiegeln und ein ästhetisch ansprechendes Landschaftsbild zu erzeugen.

Die auffällige Ästhetik der Landschaft mit ihren flachen Ebenen, aus denen sich fast schon kegelförmige Hügel erheben, inspirierte viele Künstler. In der Renaissance lieferte die Gegend insbesondere den Künstlern der Schule von Siena zahlreiche Motive für ihre Landschaftsbilder. Ihre Gemälde befassen sich mit der Schönheit landwirtschaftlich bewirtschafteter Gegenden und der Harmonie von Mensch und Natur.

Die Landschaft ähnelt den Crete Senesi, auch hier dominieren Biancane (weiße Gesteinsart) und Calanchi (Erosionsrinnen).

Geografie

Weinanbau im Val d’Orcia, Monte Amiata im Hintergrund

Das Val d’Orcia setzt sich aus den fünf Gemeinden Castiglione d’Orcia, Montalcino, Pienza, Radicofani und San Quirico d’Orcia zusammen[3] und liegt an den nördlichen Ausläufern des Berges Monte Amiata. Im Talgebiet fließen unter anderem die Flüsse Asso, Formone, Orcia, Vellora und Vivo. Das Gebiet hat eine Fläche von 61.188 Hektar.[1] Die Gegend wird durchquert von der historischen Via Francigena und der römischen Via Cassia, die teilweise streckengleich sind. Im Nordwesten grenzt die Landschaft an die Crete Senesi, im Nordosten an das Chianatal (Val di Chiana, auch Valdichiana).

Geschichte

Großen Einfluss auf das Gebiet hatte bis zum frühen Spätmittelalter die Familie der Aldobrandeschi, die in Rocca d’Orcia bis zum Jahr 1250 Statthalter hatten. Danach übernahmen zunehmend Familien aus Siena die Kontrolle über das Tal, wie zuerst die Salimbeni, die in der Gegend um Castiglione d’Orcia und Radicofani stärker wurden. Nach deren Niederlage gegen die Republik Siena 1418 übernahmen dann weitere Familien aus Siena die Herrschaft über das Territorium, wobei die Familie der Piccolomini und besonders deren berühmtester Papst, Pius II., hervorragten. Unter ihm und seinem Architekten Bernardo Rossellino wurde aus dem kleinen Ort Corsignano die heutige Gemeinde Pienza und die Konkathedrale Santa Maria Assunta entstand. Weitere Bauprojekte, wie der Staudamm am Fluss Orcia zur Versorgung von Pienza, scheiterten am Tod Pius II. im Jahr 1464. Im Konflikt zwischen Siena und dem Florenz der Medici spielte Montalcino eine wichtige Rolle, als die Regierung von Siena nach der Belagerung der Stadt von 1555 bis 1559 in Montalcino residierte, dann aber nach dem Frieden von Cateau-Cambrésis aufgab.[5] Danach wurde das Val d’Orcia Teil des Großherzogtum Toskana, und erlebte unter den Medici Verbesserungen der Infrastruktur an der Via Francigena / Via Cassia.

Im Zweiten Weltkrieg hatte das Orciatal eine strategische Position als Vorposten der Gotenstellung, bei der mehrere Kriegsverbrechen begangen wurden. Literarisch wurde diese Epoche von Iris Origo in ihrem Buch Toskanisches Tagebuch 1943/44: Kriegsjahre im Val d’Orcia festgehalten.

Weitere Orte und Sehenswürdigkeiten

Abtei Sant’Antimo, Kloster im Ortsgebiet von Montalcino

Bagni San Filippo, Thermalbäder in Ortsgebiet von Castiglione d’Orcia

Bagno Vignoni, Thermalbäder im Ortsgebiet von San Quirico d’Orcia

Campiglia d’Orcia

Parco Artistico Naturale e Culturale della Val d’Orcia, 1996 entstandener Naturpark

Rocca d’Orcia, Burg der Aldobrandeschi nahe Castiglione d’Orcia

Torrenieri, Ort an der Via Francigena, Ortsteil von Montalcino

Vivo d’Orcia, Ortsteil von Castiglione d’Orcia am Monte Amiata

(Wikipedia)

"mass transit railway" (i) by Hugo P

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Daily average patronage: 4,918,000 (domestic service Dec 2017)

(Do click the image to view large)

18:34 pm, Central Station, Mass Transit Railway (MTR), Hong Kong

Good light 2016 - Results by Dagmar Petersohn

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FIAP /PSA Patronage

The outer walls of the Shahi Qila, Lahore, Pakistan - April 2008 by Saffy H

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