Baptistery of St. John
(Battistero di San Giovanni)

Great Discoveries "Personal Tour Guides" will provide you with the most enjoyable and informative way to visit the Baptistery of St. John. Our carefully researched tour identifies and locates the most relevant treasures to ensure that you do not miss important works and that you clearly understand each items artistic and historic significance. As you view these carefully selected treasures, our professional narrators, accompanied by historically appropriate background music, will delight, amuse and inform you, making your visit a most memorable experience. Learn about the Baptistery's history (from Roman antiquity), her artwork and Ghiberti's magnificent "Gates of Paradise" with informative descriptions, photo's, building diagram, audio sample and more.

The Baptistery of St. John, the oldest building in Florence Italy, from the earliest times, constituted the heart of city's spiritual life. It was used for centuries to baptize every Florentine child, thus serving as a religious focus and a way of strengthening the allegiance of Florentine's to the city of their birth. The Baptistery is a building that is beautiful to look at, both inside and out. It is a masterpiece of architecture whose beginnings date back to antiquity.

Like many holy places in Europe, there is no way of telling exactly how long the Baptistery has been revered. Local lore says there has been some sort of shrine on this spot since ancient Roman times. The origins of the temple dedicated to St. John the Baptist, later to become the patron saint of Florence, are still uncertain. According to local lore, it was founded in Roman times as a temple dedicated to Mars, the Roman god of war. Dante himself declared that his "beautiful San Giovanni" was a classical Roman building. Excavations carried out in this century have in fact discovered remains of Roman constructions beneath both the Baptistery and the Cathedral.

The Baptistery’s decorations reflect the work of generations of artists who have made it into a tangible example of Florence’s main achievements in the field of art. From its Romanesque sheathing of green and white marble to its Mannerist statuary, from the Byzantine and medieval imprint of its mosaics, to the ambitious casting of its three spectacular sets of bronze doors, the Baptistery reflects Florence’s growth in art, from the darkest of the dark ages through the Renaissance.

San Giovanni did not definitely abandon its position as a cathedral and become only a Baptistery until 1128, at which time Florence’s population had grown to 30,000 inhabitants. After that time the baptismal sacrament was only administered twice a year, making several entrance doors necessary to allow access to the crowds of worshippers. At the beginning of the 14th century it was decided to replace the existing wooden doors, which were considered unworthy of one of Italy’s finest religious buildings. Pisa’s cathedral had distinguished sculpted bronze doors since the 11th century, so in 1328 the Florentines called in a Pisan, Andrea Pisano, to complete the job for them. It took him ten years, and his doors were initially installed facing eastward, opposite the Duomo. The motifs were gilded, and this added to their rich appearance. They now hang at the south door.

Lorenzo Ghiberti, a Florentine who lived from 1378 to 1455, was commissioned to complete the north doors which he divided into panels as had Andrea Pisano. In creating his north portal doors he used the multi panel format to illustrate the life of Christ in a direct narrative fashion. The mass of characters are elegantly and vividly depicted with an originality that makes this a fascinating study of humanity.

Nevertheless, the north doors, while extraordinary, are nothing to the sublime east doors, which were ordered from Ghiberti as soon as the first set was complete. The artist would spend most of the rest of his life, the next 27 years, from 1425 through 1452, on these doors. Work he pursued, in his own words, “with the greatest diligence and the greatest love.” They are known as “Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise,” supposedly, because Michelangelo once remarked, “They were so beautiful they deserved to be the portals of heaven.”

Your first impression of the interior is of a bland shell, and one can easily understand the genesis of the 15th century legend that claimed the Baptistery was once a Roman temple. In general, this vast domed space mimics the Pantheon in Rome. In fact it is enriched with elements taken from ancient monuments. Its monolithic columns, two sculpture sarcophagi and part of the marble wall sheeting were previously used in prior Roman buildings. By contrast, the oriental mosaic tile motifs of the pavement, begun in 1209, appear to represent the Islamic world. The geometric wall decorations combine late Imperial patterns with others of distant Germanic parentage. And the sumptuous mosaics in the dome suggest the influence of Byzantine art from central Italy. The overall effect is that of a magnificent crossroads of the many cultures of medieval Europe.

Listen to a short 2 minute audio sample of our content. You can also click on the picture for an enlarged view.

Baptistery History

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