Thursday we went to the Basilica of Santo Spirito. It is on the other side of the river (Oltrarno). This is another church designed by Brunelleschi. It wasn't finished until after he died and the facade never was completed. Michelangelo had a special relationship with this church, whose official allowed him to dissect corpses to study anatomy in secret. He sculpted a wooden crucifix in thanks.
Santo Spirito does not allow photographs, so if you want to see more of the interior, Wikipedia has a fairly good article here. The church has 38 chapels along the sides and transepts. It also had a very unusual structure at the altar, kind of like a huge gazebo over the whole area. Each chapel had an interesting painting; some had tombs. Fortunately, there were signs describing each picture and naming the artist. Most were not familiar names to me.
The Michelangelo crucifix is displayed in a room off to one side. It shows his early genius in sculpting. Off that chapel was an entry to the cloister, where we could walk around outside. This is the only area in which photos were allowed.
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| Nativity scene (in a teepee?) |
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| Cloister walkway showing frescoes above memorial plaques |
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| Fountain in the center; the garden area was roped off |
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| One wall had several lemon trees |
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| A small portion of the refectory was open and this Last Supper was there |
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