The cathedral museum of Prato, Italy

Cathedral Museum of Prato

Entrance
Established 1967
Location Palazzo Vescovile - Piazza Duomo, 49, Prato
Type sacred art, archeology, architecture

Coordinates: 45°24′25″N 11°52′20″E / 45.4069039°N 11.8722693°E / 45.4069039; 11.8722693 The Cathedral museum of Prato, Italy was founded in 1967 in a few rooms of the Bishop's residence and in 1976 grew to include items from both the Cathedral of Saint Stephen and the diocesan territory.

History

The small courtyard that precedes the bishop's residence provides the entrance to the museum which opened in 1967 in the first two rooms. In 1976 the museum was enlarged to accommodate works from the entire diocese including the prestigious reliefs from the pulpit of Donatello. The collection is set up as a diocesan museum.

In 1980 the vaults under the cathedral's transept were added to the museum's space, and other areas were included between 1993-1996, beginning work, only recently concluded, to reconnect the various sections into one single itinerary that passes through a few rooms in the old Palazo dei Proposti, around the harmonious Romanesque cloister, and concluding under the cathedral. A reorganization of the museum space began in 2007, and plans include the preparation of the Renaissance rooms.[1]

Museum itinerary and works

An established itinerary guides the visitor through six rooms containing numerous and varied works of art, passes through an archeological section and the Romaesque cloister, and finishes with the Antiquarium and the vaults.

Room 1: the 13th to the 15th centuries

Madonna with child (c. 1365)

This room houses important sculptures and paintings (mostly parts of polyptychs) from the 13th to the early 15th centuries from Prato, along with liturgical items from the same era, including:

Room 2: Sacred liturgical objects

16th century antependium

The adjoining room contains items used during liturgical services among which are:

Room 3: the Sacred Belt (in Italian Sacra Cintola)

Niccolò di Cecco del Mercia, Mary giving the sacred belt to Saint Thomas

This room is dedicated to works associated with devotion to a precious Marian relic, the Sacred Belt (also known as the Sacred Girdle or the Girdle of Thomas), venerated in Prato from the 12th century:

Archaeological excavations

Ceramic pieces from the medieval period

From the room of the Sacred Belt the visitor can descend to an area partly underground, reaching the archeological section, made to connect the first section of the museum with the rooms along the cloister. The excavation allowed for the recovery of various archeological items, which attest to the habitation of the area from the Etruscans to the Lombards. Of great historical interest:

Room 4: the Renaissance

Filippo Lippi, Esequie di San Girolamo

From the archaeological area the visitor can go up into a 15th-century structure, which contains works from the 15th and 16th centuries. Of particular interest:

Room 5: the Pulpit

Donatello, Balcony pulpito ("pulpito a balconata") with dancing angels (1434 - 1438)

The room takes its name from the celebrated balcony pulpit made by Donatello for an outside corner of the facade of the cathedral for the solemn showing of the relic of the Sacred Belt:

16th century antependium

In addition, this room houses:

Room 6: the 17th to the 19th centuries

Alessandro Franchi, Trasporto di Santo Stefano

The following room contains interesting works of art and liturgical object dated from the 17th to the 19th centuries. Of particular importance:

The Romanesque cloister

The cloister

From the 16th century room the visitor can go up to the Romanesque cloister (late 12th century), in white marble and green serpentine, characterized by original zoomorphic capitals created by the Master of Cabestany.

The Antiquarium and the "vaults"

La Cappella della Compagnia di Santo Stefano

From the cloister can be reached:

The corridor exits into the "vaults", an underground area proceeding under the transept of the cathedral, used from 1326 to the end of the 18th century for burials from which remain various coats of arms (in stone and painted) and burial insignia.

Contiguous with the "vaults" is the chapel of Saint Stephen (beginning of the 15th century), containing painted murals:

Also in the chapel are preserved important relics of the cathedral:

Notes

  1. ↑ From the end of the 1990s the best painted works were joined to the exposition I tesori della città (The treasures of the city) at The Museum of Painted Murals (il Museo di pittura murale )

Bibliography

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/11/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.