A little-known treasure of a museum in central Florence, Museo Marino Marini is offering yet another reason to venture to the former church of S. Pancrazio. A just-inaugurated exhibition traces the history of Christianity and reveals over five centuries of devotion and sacred beauty through over 100 prestigious works from the Treasure of the Holy Sepulchre collection.
Running until January 7, 2025, The Treasure of the Holy Land at Museo Marino Marini. The Beauty of the Sacred: the Altar of the Medici and the Gifts of the Kings features masterpieces mainly from the Terra Sancta Museum in Jerusalem as well as from leading Italian museums like the Uffizi Galleries and the Capodimonte Museum, plus prestigious libraries such as the National Central Library of Florence, the Laurenziana and Riccardiana. The State Archives of Florence, the Bank of Naples, the Pratesi Collection and some private collections also have contributed to the show.
The exhibition starts with the Rucellai Sepulchre, a marvel of the Florentine Renaissance designed by Leon Battista Alberti as a replica of the Jerusalem Basilica, as the itinerary opens with an evocative narration of the history of the Holy Sepulchre of the Holy Land, enriched by documents and artefacts. The show then winds through the splendours of the Renaissance, the refined works of the Habsburg-Lorraine and reaches the modern period before culminating in the precious collection of masterpieces donated by the sovereigns of Spain, France, Portugal and the Holy Roman Empire, followed by treasures from the great Italian powers such as Venice, Genoa, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Kingdom of Naples.
“The exhibition is an excursion into the history of the Holy Sepulchre, with a preliminary journey into the history of the Jerusalem Basilica, starting with the Rucellai Chapel, which evokes the construction of the Basilica of Constantine,” explains Leyla Bezzi, the show’s executive curator. “It also tells of the concept of the beauty of the sacred that is intertwined with aesthetic, spiritual and cultural elements, manifesting itself through art that arouses wonder and reverence, elevating the human spirit and facilitating contact with the divine.”
Particular attention is paid to the gifts from Florence and Italy, also due to the painstaking restoration of certain works, including the Altar of the Medici, which includes the Ornament donated by Ferdinand I, Grand Duke of Tuscany and crafted by Domenico Portigiani, Giambologna and Pietro Francavilla between 1588 and 1590. The Museo Marino Marini initiative has also resulted in the restoration of other treasures, such as the Tabernacle of the Commissioner of the Holy Land and the Lampada (Lamp) commissioned by Ferdinand IV Grand Duke of Tuscany, the manuscript code Antifonario 18, along with sacred vestments like Pianeta di Alice di Toscana and the Paliotto of the Commissioner of the Holy Land in Venice, and finally, the tapestry of the Uffizi Galleries titled Cosimo il Vecchio fa costruire un ospedale per i pellegrini a Gerusalemme (Cosimo the Elder has a hospital built for pilgrims in Jerusalem).
As noted by The Most Reverend Francesco Patton O.F.M, Custodian of the Holy Land, who visited the exhibition on the occasion of its inauguration, “Tuscany, linked to the Holy Land since the Crusades, still preserves today, in the stones brought by Pazzino de’ Pazzi from the Holy Sepulchre, a precious legacy that inflames the Florentine Easter tradition of the Scoppio del Carro. In this Holy Land afflicted by hatred and division, it is necessary to build bridges, propose new initiatives and open horizons. This exhibition highlights how the link between the Custody and Tuscany continues to generate stimulating cultural exchanges even today.”
