"Renaissance sculpture at Orsanmichele" Top 5 Page for this destination Chiesa di Orsanmichele Tip by brendareed

Orsanmichele is both a church and a museum. The building began as an open loggia that held a grain market with the grain stored upstairs as well as offices; later the walls of the loggia were filled in but on some of the pilasters you can still see the chutes where the grain would come down to the market.

The church was created after an image to the Virgin Mary was attributed to miracles during the 1348 plague. After the plague, Orcagna made a very elaborate Gothic altar to surround Daddi’s altar painting of Mary. The altar and the painting can still be seen in the church.

However, Orsanmichele also has a civic side as it was the religious center for the guilds of the city. Each of the larger guilds commissioned a grand statue to be placed in the 14 niches on the outside of the church. Today, the statues in the outside niches are copies so the originals can be spared from the deteriorating elements of weather and vandalism. But you can still see the originals in the second floor museum.

For an informative video about Orsanmichele, visit the Khan Academy website.

Note: The museum at Orsanmichele is only open on MONDAY from 10-5. It is staffed by volunteers and is free to enter. Enter through the church and head up the spiral staircase in the back left corner of the building. If you are in Florence on a Monday, this is well worth your time as you can see some original statues from Donatello, Ghiberti, Verrochio, Nanni di Banco, and others.

In the museum you can see almost all the original statues; the exception being Donatello’s St. George which is located in the Bargello. The statues are set up in the original positions of the niches. The commissioning of these statues allowed some very important Renaissance artists to work together – at one time the deadline was approaching and the artists were told to get their statues done or the guild would lose their niche to another, potentially lesser, guild. The bronze statues represent greater wealth of the guild since bronze was so much more expensive to work with than marble.

Here is a list of the statues and the guilds who commissioned them.

1) Saint Peter by Donatello (Guild of the Butchers)
2) Saint Philip by Nanni di Banco (Guild of Shoemakers)
3) Four Crowned Saints group by Nanni di Banco (Guild of Stone and Wood Masters)
4) Saint George by Donatello (Guild of the Armourers and Swordmakers) – In the Bargello
5) Saint Matthew by Ghiberti (Guild of the Money Changers and Lenders)
6) Saint Stephan by Ghiberti (Guild of wool merchants)
7) Saint Eligius by Nanni di Banco (Guild of Blacksmiths)
8) Saint Mark by Donatello (Guild of Linen Drapers and Peddlers)
9) Saint James by Nicolò di Piero Lamberti (Guild of the Furriers)
10) Madonna della Rosa by Govanni di Piero Tedesco (?) (Guild of Physicians and Apothecaries)
11) John the Evangelist by Baccio da Montelupo (Guild of silk weavers)
12) Saint Luke by Gianbologna (Guild of Magistrates and Notaries)
13) Christ and Doubting Thomas by Verrocchio (Merchants Court)
14) Saint John the Baptist by Ghiberti (Guild of Wholesale Cloth Importers)

Once you have admired the statues on the second floor, take the stairs up to the third floor (the former grain storehouse) for a magnificent view of the Cathedral. This floor has some minor displays, but the view is worth the steps.

Church of Orsanmichele:
Open weekdays: 10 am - 5 pm
Holidays: 10 am - 5 pm
Entrance: free

Museum:
Open only on Monday
10 am - 5 pm
Entrance: free


After leaving Orsanmichele, be sure to walk around the building to see the niches where copies of all those statues stand – it gives you an idea of how the originals looks in the same spots. After you are finished looking about, take some time to wander to the nearby Piazza della Repubblica, easy to spot with its carousel.

Address: Via Arte della Lana
Phone: +39 055 284 944
Website: http://www.museumsinflorence.com/musei/orsanmichele.html