15 Aug Michelangelo and the grave in front of him
In Florence the church of Santa Croce rightly has the name of Pantheon of the Italians. Built for the Franciscan order to suffer from the second half of the eighteenth century in one of the poorest districts of the city of Florence, over time the church of Santa Croce gained increasing importance in the eyes of the Florentine population. The title of pantheon of the Italians is linked to the presence, within the church of at least 258 funerary monuments that pay homage to the great Florentine, Tuscan and Italian personalities. These include Michelangelo, Galileo Galilei, Macchiavelli and Giacchino Rossini. Everyday the tourists gaze is focused on the tombs of the prestigious guests, ignoring that in reality one of the true masterpieces preserved in the church is a sculptural composition leaning against the pillar that is right in front of Michelangelo’s tomb. It is the Virgin Mary with the child sitting on a bed of soft clouds while the cherubs and the seraphim are the crown. Full of grace, elegance and finesse worthy of the paintings of Leonardo da Vinci, it protects the eternal sleep of an unknown character who died in 1478 sacrificing himself for the Medici cause. Whose is it? Follow me to his discovery.