Italy: Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flowers, also known as Il Duomo di Firenze), Baptistery of St. John (left), and Giotto's Campanile (bell tower, right), Piazza del Duomo, Florence

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flowers) is the main church of Florence. Il Duomo di Firenze, as it is ordinarily called, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style with the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi.

The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th-century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris.

The cathedral complex, located in Piazza del Duomo, includes the Baptistery and Giotto's Campanile.

Copyright:

CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Photographer:

David Henley

Credit:

Pictures From History