Santi Simone e Giuda, Florence

Facade

Interior

Santi Simone e Giuda (Saints Simon and Jude) is a church in Florence, situated on the Piazza San Simone in an area of narrow streets between the Piazza Santa Croce and the Piazza della Signoria. The present structure dates from 1243 but underwent a major renovation designed by Gherardo Silvani in 1630. Today it is affiliated with the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.^[1]

History

The church began its life in 1192 as a small oratory situated outside the city walls in vineyards owned by the monks of the Badia Fiorentina. It was enlarged in 1209 and then completely re-built in 1243. The new building was consecrated in 1247 by Bishop Ardengo Trotti and was designated a parish church. It was badly damaged when the Arno flooded in 1527. Amongst the damage was the loss of the ciborium which had been made of wood and was completely washed away. Serious renovation of the church did not begin until the first quarter of the 17th century when the archbishop of Florence, Alessandro Marzi Medici, elevated its status to a priory and named Giovanni Niccolai as its first prior in 1608, a post he held until his death in 1642. Niccolai came from a wealthy and cultured Tuscan family and initiated the renovation of the church. By 1619 a new high altar made of Carrara marble was added and the choir stalls and presbytery were completely renovated under the patronage of Bartolomeo Galilei, a relative of Galileo. The next stage of the renovation began in 1630. It was designed by Gherardo Silvani and paid for by the nephew of Bartolomeo. Also called Bartoleomeo Galilei, he was a Knight of Malta and steward to Leopoldo de' Medici. The final stage of Silvani's renovation (a richly decorated ceiling) was completed in 1665. The church contains numerous emblems of both the Galilei family and the Knights of Malta.

Burials

Notable Florentines buried in the church include

Raffaellino del Garbo (ca. 1466–1524), painter
Andrea Salvadori (1591–1634), poet and librettist

References

↑ Archdiocese of Florence. Chiesa dei Santi Simone e Giuda

External links

Media related to Santi Simone e Giuda (Florence) at Wikimedia Commons

Coordinates: 43°46′11″N 11°15′38″E / 43.76972°N 11.26056°E / 43.76972; 11.26056

Tourism in Florence

Religious sites

Basilicas	Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore S Lorenzo Medici Chapel S Croce Baroncelli and Pazzi Chapels S Maria Novella Tornabuoni Chapel SS Annunziata S Marco S Miniato al Monte S Maria del Carmine Brancacci Chapel S Trinita Bartolini Salimbeni Chapel Sassetti Chapel S Spirito

Churches	Badia Fiorentina Battistero di San Giovanni S Mary of the Angels Certosa Orsanmichele Ognissanti Oratorio dei Vanchetoni Oratory of Gesù Pellegrino Oratory of S Thomas Aquinas San Frediano in Cestello S Gaetano S Giovannino degli Scolopi S Giovannino dei Cavalieri S Jacopo sopr'Arno S Salvatore al Vescovo S Ambrogio S Felicita Santa Maria Maddalena dei Pazzi S Maria Maggiore S Martino del Vescovo Ss Apostoli S Pancrazio S Salvi Ss Simone e Giuda S Stefano al Ponte

Other	Great Synagogue

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and palaces

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Library

Biblioteca Riccardiana at Palazzo Medici Riccardi
British Institute of Florence
Gabinetto Vieusseux (Palazzo Strozzi)
Kunsthistorisches Institut
Laurentian Library
National Central Library

Landmarks

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Squares

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Fort

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Events and traditions

Districts of Florence • Trams in Florence

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