San Francesco is a basilica church in Siena, Tuscany, Italy. It was erected in c. 1228-1255 and later enlarged in the 14th-15th centuries, the original Romanesque edifice being turned into the current large

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

one.

Architecture

The basilica is on the Egyptian Cross plan, with a nave covered by spans and a transept, according to type favoured by the Mendicant Orders, which needed spaces capable to house large crowds of faithful. The current interior looks rather sober after a fire in 1655 and the restoration of 1885–1892, when many of the Baroque altars were demolished (some of the paintings has been however returned in recent times). The neo-Gothic façade, flanked by the 1763 campanile, dates to the early 20th century. The medieval marble decoration and the 15th century portal were removed in that occasion. Toscana Siena9 tango7174

Interior

The counterfaçade houses the remains of two 14th century sepulchres, as well as two large fragmentary frescoes from the city gates of Porta Romana and Porta Pispini: a ''Coronation of the Virgin'' by Sassetta and Sano di Pietro (1447–1450) and a ''Nativity'' by Il Sodoma (1531). Also visible is the ancient 15th century portal by Francesco di Giorgio Martini. Among the numerous artworks in the church, are ''Madonna with Child and Saints'' by

Jacopo Zucchi Jacopo Zucchi (c. 1541- c. 1590) was a Florentine painter of the Mannerist style, active in Florence and Rome. His training began in the studio of Giorgio Vasari, and he participated in decoration of the ''Studiolo'' and the ''Salone dei Cinq ...

, an expressive ''Crucifixion'' by Pietro Lorenzetti and a fresco by his brother

Ambrogio Ambrogio is a given name, and may refer to: *Saint Ambrogio (Ambrose), patron saint of Milan *Ambrogio Lorenzetti ( – 1348), painter * Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, the birth name of Pope Pius XI *Ambrogio Bergognone, Renaissance painter *Amb ...

, a ''Prayer of St James'' by Giuseppe Nicola Nasini, a ''Martyrdom of St Martina'' by

Pietro da Cortona Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...

and a ''Madonna with Child'' frescoed by Jacopo di Mino del Pellicciaio. In the right transept is a 14th-century marble of ''St Francis'', from the ancient façade.

External links

{{Authority control Churches completed in 1255 Francesco Gothic architecture in Siena Francesco Siena 13th-century establishments in the Republic of Siena 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy