Campanile di Giotto, Florence

Campanile di Giotto is the freestanding bell tower attached to Florence Cathedral, built in the Gothic tradition and designed by Giotto with Arnolfo di Cambio. Its square tower rises about 85 metres, with sides measuring about 14 metres, and its structure is arranged in five horizontal sections. Polygonal supports mark each corner, while coloured marble forms geometric patterns across the exterior.

The lower portion carries a remarkable sculptural programme. Its panels present human work, learning, virtues, sacred subjects and figures from Genesis; the reliefs make the tower read almost like a carved visual history. Look at the marble panels set into the base and the figures placed in the niches above them.

The artwork you see outdoors consists of copies; the original sculptures are kept in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo. Giotto began the project in 1334, and the foundation stone had been laid by 19 July 1334. At his death in 1337, only the lowest section had been completed.

Andrea Pisano continued the work, and Francesco Talenti finished the tower in 1359 after construction had stopped during the Black Death. Giotto’s planned spire was never built, leaving the campanile at its present height. The summit is reached by climbing 414 steps, and Donatello’s figures appear among the sculptures in the eastern niches.