The visit will begin inside the Basilica and will continue through the cloisters and the Spanish Chapel.

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella. Saints, Martyrs, and Inquisitors.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella is not only the artistic masterpiece of Leon Battista Alberti and the many painters who, over the centuries, have contributed works of extraordinary beauty, but it also hides a lesser-known side.

In the early 13th century, the original church saw the establishment of a group of Dominicans, who gradually strengthened their presence with the clear intention of creating a place of prayer and faith of great religious and artistic significance.

Within the Dominican Order, there were figures of profound spiritual depth, but also monks whose notoriety became tied to the Inquisition Tribunal and the severe sentences they imposed.

Thus, we will speak of both light and shadow: of saints who chose martyrdom rather than deny the word of God, and of Inquisitors who failed to embody the Christian compassion they were meant to represent.

We will seek them out in the paintings within the Basilica, in the Chapter House, and in the frescoed lunettes of the cloister, immersed in an atmosphere of silence and prayer that starkly contrasts with the images of brutal clashes they once commanded.

The visit will begin inside the Basilica and will continue through the cloisters and the Spanish Chapel, as we search for the figures we have introduced.

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