SANTA CROCE, Pazzi Chapel

After visiting the church and its frescoes, you certainly won't mind taking a break outside in the beautiful greenery of the peaceful cloisters.

The exit onto the first cloister is along the right side of the basilica. Of irregular shape and kept as a garden, it offers a magnificent view of the entire, great Gothic church. This cloister has also been used over the centuries for burials, but now you can see several sculptures here, including a work by Henry Moore under the canopy in the middle.

In this cloister you can visit Pazzi Chapel, named after the powerful Florentine family connected to the famous conspiracy I discuss in one of the Cathedral audio files. It is a pure example of humanism, and among the finest and most refined masterpieces of Filippo Brunelleschi. Its construction began three years before the great architect's death; in fact, the façade decorated with delicate sculptures has remained unfinished. The rectangular interior is surmounted by a circular dome. Look at the beautiful inlaid panels that cover the doors and the stupendous colored terracotta tondi of the great sculptor Luca della Robbia.

After admiring this chapel's perfect proportions and pure beauty, go from the cloister to the grandiose refectory of the Franciscan convent. At the back of the noble, vast 14th-century hall you can see a beautiful fresco from the same period: in the lower part you can recognize the Last Supper, and near that a large painting celebrating the Franciscan order's devotion to the Holy Cross in a symbolic form....