Toward an Interpretation of the Pazzi Chapel

Abstract

THE PAZZI CHAPEL, which was commissioned by Andrea dei Pazzi and which served as the chapter house of Santa Croce, was begun by Filippo Brunelleschi and was actually completed by followers after the great Florentine architect's death in 1446 (Fig. 1). The chapel is universally regarded as one of the most beautiful and representative works of the Renaissance in Florence. The pure geometrical style of Brunelleschi's building has frequently been extolled; its classicism and proportions have been analyzed; and the dates of its construction have been carefully studied.1 Yet it is a remarkable fact that scholars have almost entirely overlooked the iconography of the chapel. In the interior of the chapel, a circular dome rests above the center of a rectangular structure.2 Twelve ribs radiate out from the central oculus in the dome, and the twelve other oculi seem to float between these ribs (Fig. 2). In the pendentives below, four terra-cotta medallions represent the Evangelists and their symbols. In the frieze, images in painted stucco of the Agnus Dei alternate with pairs of cherubim (Fig. 3). The four walls of the chapel contain roundels representing in terra-cotta the twelve Apostles, and below the Apostles, twelve niche-shaped moldings (Fig. 1). Below