Thanks to the Committee for the Restoration and Adornment of Tabernacles of the Friends of Florence Museums and the American non-profit Friends of Florence, the neighboring tabernacles in piazza del Carmine and piazza Piattellina have been given a much-needed makeover.
Tabernacle in Piazza Piattellina
These testimonies to the religious and civic history of Florence have not been spared by the threat of time and weather, but with the help of some enthusiastic individuals and organizations, they have been given another chance at life. The restoration of the works, which was made financially possible with the collaboration between the Committee and Friends of Florence, began last summer and were unveiled to the public on February 1, 2017.
Maestro di San Martino a Mensola’s 14th-century tabernacle in piazza del Carmine, depicting Mary and Jesus with four saints and two donors, and the one in piazza Piattellina, depicting Mary and Jesus with a young Saint John the Baptist, dating to the 16th century, underwent two vastly different restoration approaches. While a lighter maintenance intervention was needed in the case of the Carmine tabernacle, which was already the subject of an effort in the early 1990s, the tabernacle in piazza Piattellina underwent a more thorough restoration, having been severely altered and compromised by 19th- and 20th- century restorations.
Tabernacle in Piazza del Carmine
The work by the restoration companies Bartolomeo Ciccone (piazza del Carmine) and Atelier Restauro snc and Giuseppe Bartoli srl (piazza Piattellina) have ensured that the tabernacles can once again be appreciated for time to come.
