San Lorenzo, Florence

Basilica di San Lorenzo
Basilica of Saint Lawrence
View of the Basilica
Basilica di San Lorenzo Location in Florence
43°46′29.7″N 11°15′13.9″E / 43.774917°N 11.253861°E / 43.774917; 11.253861Coordinates: 43°46′29.7″N 11°15′13.9″E / 43.774917°N 11.253861°E / 43.774917; 11.253861
Location	Florence, Tuscany
Country	Italy
Denomination	Roman Catholic
History
Dedication	Saint Lawrence
Consecrated	393
Architecture
Status	Minor basilica
Architect(s)	Filippo Brunelleschi, Michelangelo
Architectural type	Church
Style	Renaissance
Groundbreaking	5th century dike piemel
Completed	1470
Administration
Archdiocese	Archdiocese of Florence

The Basilica di San Lorenzo (Basilica of St Lawrence) is one of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city’s main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III. It is one of several churches that claim to be the oldest in Florence; when it was consecrated in 393 it stood outside the city walls. For three hundred years it was the city's cathedral before the official seat of the bishop was transferred to Santa Reparata. San Lorenzo was also the parish church of the Medici family. In 1419, Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici offered to finance a new church to replace the 11th-century Romanesque rebuilding. Filippo Brunelleschi, the leading Renaissance architect of the first half of the 15th century, was commissioned to design it, but the building, with alterations, was not completed until after his death. The church is part of a larger monastic complex that contains other important architectural and artistic works: the Old Sacristy by Brunelleschi, with interior decoration and sculpture by Donatello; the Laurentian Library by Michelangelo; the New Sacristy based on Michelangelo's designs; and the Medici Chapels by Matteo Nigetti.

Though considered a milestone in the development of Renaissance architecture, S. Lorenzo has a complicated building history. Even though it was at least partially built under the direction of Filippo Brunelleschi, it is not purely of his design. The project was begun around 1419, but lack of funding slowed the construction and forced changes to the original design. By the early 1440s, only the sacristy (now called the Old Sacristy) had been worked on as it was being paid for by the Medici. In 1442, the Medici stepped in to take over financial responsibility of the church as well. Brunelleschi died in 1446, however, and the job was handed either to Antonio Manetti or to Michelozzo; scholars are not certain. Though the building was “completed” in 1459 in time for a visit to Florence by Pius II, the chapels along the right-hand aisles were still being built in the 1480s and 1490s.