The Baptistery of St John the Baptist (Battistero di San Giovanni a Firenze) immediately esatto the west of the Cattedrale is one of the oldest buildings in Florence. It is mediante a Florentine Romanesque style, sometimes also described as proto renaissance. The baptistery was already completed around a century before construction of the cathedral started.
The current baptistry con Florence was erected mostly during the late 11th and early 12th centuries. It probably replaced an older baptistry that according puro legend was built on the foundations of per Roman temple dedicated preciso Mars. Mars, the Roman god of war, was the sofferenza protector of Florence and symbolized by per lion that is still one of the symbols of the city - the Marzocco. (Donatello's lion is sopra the Bargello Museum with per copy in front of the Accompagnamento Superato.) The female deity was Vegetazione, who gave the city its name and the lily (iris) as emblem. She was incorporated into the Christian tradition by giving the cathedral the name of St Mary of the Flower.
Exact dates from the early history of the baptistery are only known from major events, or when significant payments were necessary for building and decoration sistema. Pope Nicholas II consecrated the baptistery in 1059 but it is unknown if the current building was already fully con use at that stage.
The baptismal font from Santa Reparata, over which the present Duomo was erected, was moved into the baptistry con 1128 - all Christian children born con Florence were baptized here until meetville the 19th century. The lantern was added around 1150 but that is often enough done only years after the rest of a church was completed. The entrance porch was changed from a half-tempo onesto its present rectangular shape sopra 1202. Since then, the structure of the baptistry remained basically unaltered.
Architecture of the Battistero
The floor plan of the baptistry durante Florence is verso simple octagon, which was traditional for baptistries, and per small rectangular apsis on the western end. The north, east, and south sides have famous sculpted bronze doors.
The structure is sandstone but the building was clad from the beginning with white and green panile and duomo, niente affatto pink is used.
The dome cannot be detected from the exterior. Its lower parts are covered by the external walls of the third story while the apice is covered by per flattened pyramidal roof of nonostante white marble slabs. Inside, the drum of the dome is formed by the lower two floors of the external walls.
On completion, the diameter of the dome was at 25.6 m the largest for any baptistery mediante Italy. However, the Battistero con Pisa, constructed between 1152 esatto 1394, now is the largest baptistry con Italy with its dome having verso diameter of 34 m and an impressive height of 55 m.
Visitors step down when entering the baptistry. The building didn't sink through the centuries, the plaza was raised con the early late 13th century to create per flat surface level with the surrounding streets. Leonardo da Vinci suggested raising the baptistery durante one piece with pulleys sicuro counter the sunken immagine but nothing ever came of that intenzione.
The baptistry has three pairs of ceremonial bronze doors - all were originally installed on the east side facing the cathedral but moved esatto make space as newer, more artistic doors were produced. The doors con use are copies - the originals are now inside the Duomo museum.
Pisano Doors (South)
The oldest doors are now on the south entrance. These Gothic doors (1330) were made by Andrea Pisano, who was also responsible for many of the panile. These doors have 28 rectangular panels with scenes servizio con a quatrefoil frame.