Basilica di San Francesco description and photos - Italy: Siena (Topic)

Basilica di San Francesco description and photos - Italy: Siena. Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The title in English is Basilica di San Francesco.

Photo and description

San Francesco is a church in Siena, built in 1228-1255 on the site of a former Franciscan temple and enlarged in the 14-15th centuries. Its original Romanesque appearance was redesigned in the Gothic style - this is how we see the church today.

The basilica was built in the form of an Egyptian cross with a nave and transept in accordance with the canons of architecture of the mendicant orders, which needed a lot of space to accommodate the crowds of believers. The current decoration of the church looks rather moderate - as a result of the fire in 1655, which destroyed most of the building, and the restorations of 1885-1892, many luxurious baroque altars were irretrievably lost. Fortunately, some of the old paintings on the walls have survived. The neo-Gothic facade was completed at the beginning of the 20th century, and the nearby bell tower - in 1763. The marble medieval decorations and portal of the 15th century that once adorned the facade have been removed.

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Topic: Basilica di San Francesco description and photos - Italy: Siena.