Santa Maria della Spina
The Church of Santa Maria della Spina or Church of Thorns is a small church in Pisa .
The name comes from a thorn in the crown of thorns that was kept in this church for a long time. However, this had to be given to the Church of Santa Chiara and is now in its chapel , which belongs to the hospital of the same name .
history
Around 1230, the construction of the church as the oratory of Santa Maria del Pontenuovo (Italian: Saint Mary of the New Bridge) began. Originally it was built on the gravel bed of the Arno River and was surrounded by an open portico . Between 1323 and 1325 it was expanded by the architect and sculptor Lupo di Francesco and decorated with a rich decoration of gable fields, pointed towers, statues, aedicules and gables. When the church became the new repository for the reliquary Thorn of the Christ Crown in 1333 , it got its current name. The building is typical of Gothic Italian architecture. The most famous artists of the 14th century, such as Lupo di Francesco, Giovanni di Balduccio , Andrea Pisano and Nino Pisano , were involved in the construction of this church . Giovanni Pisano created a. a. the Madonna col Bambino (German: Madonna with Child) and the angels in the niche on the facade .
The church had to be restored several times due to flood damage . In 1871 the church was dismantled due to the constant threat of flooding and rebuilt at the current, higher point during the redesign of the Arno promenade in 1884. The little church was last restored in 1996-1998. Many statues on the outside wall of the church have been replaced by copies and can be seen as originals in the National Museum of San Matteo .
Inside the church there are statues of the Madonna col Bambino , Saints Peter and John the Baptist by Andrea Pisano and Nino Pisano from the period from 1345 to 1349. They are considered masterpieces of the Gothic period. Andrea Pisano also made the Madonna del Latte (Breastfeeding Madonna, literally Madonna of Milk), which can be seen today in the National Museum of San Matteo . The tabernacle of Stagio Stagi , which was created in 1534 for the storage of the thorn, can also be seen.
Web links
Coordinates: 43 ° 42 ′ 55 " N , 10 ° 23 ′ 47" E