Bardi di Vernio Chapel, 14th-century chapel in Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence, Italy
The Bardi di Vernio Chapel is the last chapel on the east end of the left transept of Santa Croce in Florence, frescoed by Maso di Banco around 1336–1337. Its walls show the Stories of Saint Sylvester in five scenes read from top to bottom, left to right, while the vault carries a starry sky with Bardi coats of arms.
The chapel is the last on the east side of the left transept of Santa Croce. Its frescoes were painted by Maso di Banco around 1336-1337 for the Bardi di Vernio, a noble branch of the wealthy Bardi family, who already patronised two other chapels in the basilica. Giorgio Vasari later misattributed the cycle to Giottino.
Maso di Banco painted scenes from the Golden Legend, including Constantine's refusal to bathe in children's blood and his conversion to Christianity.
The chapel is the last one east of the left transept of Santa Croce, entered from the basilica's transept. The frescoes cover the side walls, the back wall and the vault, so they are read from above downward and from left to right. The stained-glass windows were also made to Maso di Banco's design.
On the left wall stand two tomb monuments with rare frescoes showing the Last Judgment, one featuring a kneeling Bettino de' Bardi from 1347. These personal portrayals offer glimpses into how people imagined the afterlife during that era.
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