Restoration work will take place on six lunettes in the Grand Cloister of the Santa Maria Novella church.
The lunettes, five of which depict Dominican monks, all suffered heavy damage in the flood of 1966. The project, which is scheduled for completion in December, will also provide the east side of the cloister with new lighting. Those interested can view the work in progress on www.skylinewebcams.com, which will be activated for certain periods.
The restoration will be financed by companies Rigoni di Asiago and Fondaco. It will mark the “fifth leg” of Rigoni di Asiago’s so-called “Grand Tour” of funding public works, having already financed projects in Rome, Venice, Milan and Matera. Andrea Rigoni, the company’s managing director, commented: “We want to contribute towards the preservation of a place of extreme beauty, full of history, the sort of place that makes Florence so magnificent.”
The east side of the Grand Cloister, Santa Maria Novella
Mayor of Florence Dario Nardella thanked the companies: “It’s a great pleasure to see that certain private enterprises, which have often supported us in the past, still have the interest and desire to invest in supporting our artistic and cultural heritage.”
Built between 1340 and 1360, the cloister is the largest in the city. The frescoes date to at least 200 years later and were painted by a number of artists including Bernardino Poccetti and Santi di Tito. So badly were they damaged by the 1966 flood that they had to be detached from the walls and reapplied later.