San Martino a Sezzate
San Martino a Sezzate is a church consecrated to St. Martin at the northeastern exit of the Tuscan town of Sezzate, part of the municipality of Greve in Chianti . In its strategically favorable position at the southern exit of the Cintoia valley, it towers over the plain of northern Chianti, which extends towards Florence .
history
Traces of Etruscan settlement
Already in the first millennium BC an Etruscan settlement can be found in the immediate vicinity of the church , which has been handed down under the name "Munius". In the subsequent Roman times , this place took on an important military function, as the military road " Via Cassia ", which led north from Rome, crossed the ridge to the west to then approach the Valdarno. Remnants of the old Roman road limit the property to the east and can still be visited today.
middle Ages
Although the name "Sezzate" suggests a Longobard foundation from the 7th century, it was only in the 12th century that it was explicitly mentioned in a document. At that time, the church belonged to the “Castello di Sezzate” below, a typical medieval fortification that was originally surrounded by its own castle village. The gentlemen at the time, the Florentine Alamanni family, belonged to the loyal faction of the Ghibellines , a political group that leaned towards the imperial side in the dispute between the German emperor and the papacy. In 1198 the "Lega Toscana", an amalgamation of the city of Florence with some places in the Chianti region, was proclaimed. The border of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, d. H. Until the second half of the 14th century, the southern border of the Imperial County of Tuscia ran approx. 100 km south of Sezzate, in an area in which later the most violent clashes between papal and imperial troops were to take place.
In the following years, San Martino was transferred to the family of the Conti Guidi , who as imperial governors were increasingly involved in the fighting between the Guelphs and Ghibellines since the 13th century . In 1249, the breakaway Florence was conquered by imperial troops and the Guelphs were forced to leave the city. But the victory was short-lived. It was not until the Battle of Montaperti in 1251 that the Guelfan troops could be defeated. In the course of this conflict, the Castello di Sezzate suffered severe damage, while the Church of San Martino was largely spared. At the end of the 13th century, the Guelphs again asserted themselves in Florence; the aristocratic Ghibellines were only able to assert themselves in the surrounding rural districts.
In the 15th century, San Martino fell to the famous Florentine Bardi family, who , under their patronage, had the church expanded and redesigned around 1600. On the side of the main altar, the inscriptions still remind of the foundations of Scipione Jacopo di Bardi (left: " Mr. Scipio Jacobus di Bardi donated 90 ducats for the most venerable Saint Martin of the church in Setiata for use at his church, AD 1593 "; right : " John Battista Anchini, patron saint of this church, made sure that this almost broken and aged altar was restored with the money of Lord Scipio. AD 1605 "). The coats of arms of Alamanni, Guidi and Bardi can be found in the welcome and convention rooms today .
The importance of the small church of San Martino in these times should not be underestimated. The old Roman road was still the most important connection line between Florence and Siena , as the valley connections common today were not yet developed at that time or were not used for tactical reasons. So you couldn't get past San Martino. As shown on old topographical engravings, the small church was also one of only five country churches that were outside the cities of Florence and Siena until the end of the 16th century.
Change of ownership
In 2014 the Church of San Martino and the property belonging to it were acquired by the Munich-based Livia Group. The group is an independent industrial holding and Peter Löw's private investment company . The entire property of San Martino a Sezzate, which in addition to the Catholic church consists of a residential wing and olive groves with an area of 15 hectares, has been extensively renovated and restored.
Buildings and equipment
The Church of San Martino is characterized by a simple single-nave construction, with the sacristy behind the actual altar and connected to the nave through an arched opening. The church has been redesigned several times over the years, which is particularly noticeable in the semicircular windows from the late 18th century.
In the side altars there were originally two paintings from the time of the patronage of the Bardi, i.e. the late Renaissance and the early Baroque , whereby the more important one, namely the "Madonna and Child between St. Anthony Abbas and St. Lucia", is a Florentine one today Work of the first decades of the 16th century, located in the Museo di San Francesco in Greve in Chianti. The painting “ Presentazione di Gesú al Tempio ” on the south side altar, donated by Bardi's nephew Giovan Battista Anchini, is now also in the museum's possession. It is attributed to the Florentine School of the early 17th century . Other important items from the old church furnishings have also been relocated over time. Mentioned u. a. a valuable chasuble from the 17th century on which the coats of arms of the Bardi and Strozzi families are embroidered, which is now in the Museo di Arte Sacra in Greve in Chianti.
The missing items have now largely been supplemented or replaced with originals from the period.
On the east wall is an oversized cross that serves as the base for a late 13th century Gothic torso of Christ. The emotional posture of the head is impressively underlined by the predominantly original painting of the entire figure. Here the art-historical transition from the triumphant to the suffering face of Christ becomes visible.
In front of it, the actual delimitation of the church space is the Mannerist high altar from the early 17th century, which has the gold painting typical of Florence on a lapis lazuli blue background as well as numerous grotesques and figurative representations in a glazed painting style. On the right and left on the side wings, the Gothic figures of the Old Testament King Solomon and St. Martin as Bishop of Tours, both created around 1500, can be seen on a punched gold background . They frame an almost surrealistic representation of the risen Christ . The panel painting from the beginning of the 16th century has already abandoned the gold-ground painting conception of sacred works and, with the spatial effect of the “sfumato”, can be viewed as a typical work of the Flemish Renaissance, which was widely used in the Florentine region. Above it is a modern imitation of a work by Massaccio.
In front of the Gothic stone Madonna on the side from the 14th century, a representation of Mary with St. Dominic and assistant figures from the early 17th century can be seen on the north side altar . Opposite on the south side there is a representation of St. Martin as a "Cavaliere". This is not only an important Florentine depiction of the 15th century, which is attributed to the painter Mariotto Albertinelli , the knightly depiction with horse was particularly popular in the warlike times of the late Middle Ages, as it was supposed to idealize the role model of the warrior glorify as executor of God's will.
The rest of the church is furnished with fragments of a fresco painting with scenes from the life of St. Martin.
The church treasures from the 12th to 15th centuries eventually consisting of a Romanesque chalice, gothic monstrance and paten , reflects the transcendent life orientation and religious worship that found their spiritual center in the church of San Martino.
literature
- Carlo Baldini, Italo Baldini: Pievi, parrocchie e castelli di Greve in Chianti. Vicenza, Cooperativa tipografica degli Operai, 1979.
- Giuseppe Raspini: Le chiese del piviere di Cintoia. Collana: La chiesa fiesolana 35 , Firenze, Pagnini e Martinelli Editori, 2000.
Web links
- Entry on the website of the municipality of Greve in Chianti. Retrieved August 3, 2017 .
- Entry on the website of the Museum of San Francesco in Greve in Chianti. Retrieved August 3, 2017 .
- Overview of Sezzate Castle and San Martino Church. Retrieved August 3, 2017 .
Coordinates: 43 ° 39 ' N , 11 ° 20' E