Florence, Via dell'Agnolo Tabernacle restored

The Tabernacle on Via dell’Agnolo, an important testimony to Florence’s widespread artistic heritage, has been restored. The intervention was promoted by the Committee for the Decoration and Restoration of Tabernacles of the Friends of Florentine Museums and Monuments and was carried out thanks to the support of Friends of Florence and under the High Supervision of the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio for the Metropolitan City of Florence and the Province of Prato. Performed by Bartolomeo Ciccone, the restoration involved the fresco inside the tabernacle, depicting a Crucifixion with St. Anthony Abbot and St. Verdiana, attributable to a Florentine painter of the late 16th century, probably close to the school of Andrea del Sarto.

The intervention is part of the broader activity carried out by the Committee for the Decoration and Restoration of Tabernacles, the Friends of Florentine Museums and Monuments and Friends of Florence to protect the city’s widespread artistic heritage. The goal is to preserve those works that, while embedded in the daily urban fabric, represent a fundamental element of Florence’s historical and cultural identity.

In fact, tabernacles constitute one of the most recognizable expressions of Florentine tradition: small places of popular devotion scattered among the streets, squares and corners of the city, born to accompany the daily life of citizens and over time become an integral part of the collective urban memory. Restoring them means not only safeguarding works of artistic value, but also preserving history, traditions and the relationship between spirituality and public space that characterizes the fabric of the city.

The presentation of the restoration was attended by Simonetta Brandolini d’Adda, president of Friends of Florence; Don Daniele Rossi, pastor of Sant’Ambrogio and San Giuseppe; Lorenzo Manzani, a member of the Committee for the Decoration and Restoration of Tabernacles of the Friends of Florentine Museums and Monuments; and Bartolomeo Ciccone, the restorer who carried out the work on the Tabernacle.

Located in the section of Via dell’Agnolo closest to the ring road boulevards, in the Santa Croce district, the tabernacle represents one of the many testimonies of urban devotion widespread in Florence’s historic center. The subject of the Crucifixion, particularly frequent in the Tuscan figurative tradition, here takes on a recollected and intimate dimension: not an image intended for a monumental space, but a work designed to accompany the daily passage of citizens, offering a place of recollection, prayer and shared memory.

In the center of the fresco appears Christ crucified with his head recumbent, flanked by St. Anthony Abbot and St. Verdiana kneeling in adoration. The presence of St. Verdiana also recalls theancient Vallombrosian monastery dedicated to the saint, deeply connected to the history of the neighborhood and located not far from the tabernacle. According to art-historical studies, the work may have been commissioned precisely by the Vallombrosian nuns who owned the building.

At the start of the restoration, the state of preservation appeared to be severely compromised, with lifting of the paint film, surface alterations, repainting, plaster detachment and inadequate protection systems. Prior to the intervention, diagnostic investigations in visible and ultraviolet light were carried out, followed by securing the pictorial surface, cleaning, removal of incongruous elements, recovery of the stone parts, and final pictorial reintegration. Among the most significant operations is the construction of a new protective door equipped with extra-clear shatterproof glass, designed to ensure better preservation of the work over time.

“We are very happy to have supported the restoration of the Tabernacle of Via dell’Agnolo because we have contributed to the recovery of a work of popular devotion, which holds within itself a piece of history, art and spirituality of this part of Florence,” stresses Simonetta Brandolini d’Adda, president of Friends of Florence. “Supporting the recovery of the tabernacles means taking care of a fragile but fundamental beauty, which tells an authentic face of the city and the deep relationship between art, community and memory. For this we thank the Committee for the Decoration and Restoration of the Tabernacles, Gli Amici dei Musei e dei Monumenti Fiorentini for involving us in this project, Bartolomeo Ciccone and all the professionals who carried out the restoration. Our deepest thanks also go to the Florence Chapter, which, with this tenth restoration, continues its commitment to the Florentine Tabernacles.”

Florence, Via dell'Agnolo Tabernacle restored

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