The Dome
Florence’s old cathedral, was crumbling so they built a new one over the old one. They began construction in 1296. The cathedral was meant to show Florence's position as one of the greatest cities in the world. Many years later it was finished, all except for the dome. They had intended the dome to be the glory of the cathedral.
In 1418 the Florentine fathers decide to finish the cathedral by putting a dome on but they did not want to use the Gothic style then favoured by rival cities. It was also hard to build a 150 foot wide dome when you would have to start building 180 feet off the ground. Another problem was how to build a dome in the octagonal shape dictated by the walls.They decided to hold a contest to see who could come up with the best dome design. The prize was 200 gold florins (each florin was worth about 140usd so the prize would have been about 28000usd) Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi were the main competitors. They were both master goldsmiths. …show more content…
He refused to say how because he thought other competitors might steal his ideas. To stop the outward pressure caused by it’s weight it would said to have cared about his workers. They also say he could be a hard taskmaster.
Despite the fact that Brunelleschi had come up with the design he and Lorenzo were have rings of wood, stone and iron.
In 1420 the Florentine fathers chose to make Brunelleschi the superintendent of the project. They Lorenzo Ghiberti the co-superintendent. He was also Brunelleschi’s rival. This lead to a lot of
Florence’s old cathedral, was crumbling so they built a new one over the old one. They began construction in 1296. The cathedral was meant to show Florence's position as one of the greatest cities in the world. Many years later it was finished, all except for the dome. They had intended the dome to be the glory of the cathedral.
In 1418 the Florentine fathers decide to finish the cathedral by putting a dome on but they did not want to use the Gothic style then favoured by rival cities. It was also hard to build a 150 foot wide dome when you would have to start building 180 feet off the ground. Another problem was how to build a dome in the octagonal shape dictated by the walls.They decided to hold a contest to see who could come up with the best dome design. The prize was 200 gold florins (each florin was worth about 140usd so the prize would have been about 28000usd) Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi were the main competitors. They were both master goldsmiths. …show more content…
He refused to say how because he thought other competitors might steal his ideas. To stop the outward pressure caused by it’s weight it would said to have cared about his workers. They also say he could be a hard taskmaster.
Despite the fact that Brunelleschi had come up with the design he and Lorenzo were have rings of wood, stone and iron.
In 1420 the Florentine fathers chose to make Brunelleschi the superintendent of the project. They Lorenzo Ghiberti the co-superintendent. He was also Brunelleschi’s rival. This lead to a lot of