San Giovanni Valdarno, originally named San Giovanni in Altura then Castel San Giovanni, was
founded by the Florentines in 1299 on a project which is traditionally attributed to the great architect, Arnolfo di Cambio.
The itinerary begins in Corso Italia, the main street lined by elegant Medieval and Renaissance buildings, one of which, number 83, was the home of the great Valdarno painter, Masaccio.
From Corso Italia you go along as far as the large piazza which is internally divided into two smaller squares, Piazza Masaccio and Piazza Cavour.
In the
centre of this large rectangle stands the the elegant Palazzo Pretorio, today the Municipal building, which is medieval in origin and designed by Arnolfo di Cambio, but which has since been altered several times.
From the old building surrounded by a portico, you can see the rather striking façade made up of coats of arms in stone and terracotta in the style of the della Robbia.
Continuing along the left side of Piazza Masaccio, you come accross the church of
San Lorenzo (XIV cent.) with a façade in stone and brick. Recent interior restorations have brought to light important and interesting parts of a fresco which has brought about a deeper understanding of the activity of Lo Scheggia in his native town, San Giovanni.
Along the right aisle of the church are the paintings”Martirio di San Sebastiano”,”Sant’Antonio Abate in trono e dieci episodi della sua vita”, “San Lorenzo”, “Stigmate di San Francesco” and along the
left aisle are “Sant’Antonio da Padova e San Bernardino da Siena”.
Above the high alter there is an elegant triptych by Giovanni del Biondo (Florence, documented from 1356 and who died in 1398) representing an “Incoronazione della Vergine e santi” (1374 ca.)
Outside of the church, further to the left, is the Basilica di Santa Maria delle Grazie, built at the end of the XV cent. with an imposing façade from the XIX cent. which dominates the far end of Piazza Masaccio.
In the
lunette, is “La Madonna consegna la cintola a San Tommaso Apostolo, con i Santi Giovanni Battista e Lorenzo”, a glazed terracotta by Giovanni della Robbia (1513 c.) The very large interior houses, within a XVI cent. tabernacle, a fresco depicting the “Madonna delle Grazie”, attributed to a Florentine painter from the XIV cent.
From the church, the itinerary continues inside the Museum of the Basilica which contains painters among whom are Lo Scheggia, Mariotto di
Cristofano, Giovanni da Piamonte, Domenico di Michelino, Jacopo del Sellaio, Beato Angelico and Giovanni Mannozzi called Giovanni da San Giovanni.
There are two wonderful paintings by Giovanni di Ser Giovanni called o Scheggia:
“Madonna con Bambino” (1440-1450) originally in the church of San Lorenzo in San Giovanni Valdarno and a tempera on wood depicting a “Coro di Angeli Musicanti”, once part of the sides of an organ coming from the sacristy of the Oratory of San Lorenzo (1440-1450),
In the same museum there are two works by the Valdarno painter Mariotto di Cristofano, “Christus patiens tra la Vergine e Santa Lucia” (1420-1425), originally in the Church of Santa Lucia in San Giovanni Valdarno
and a “Madonna Con Bambino e Santi” (1453) coming from the church of San Lorenzo.
Once you have visited the museum, cross the Piazza and you reach Piazza Cavour. In front of the entrance to Palazzo d’Arnolfo is the Pieve of San Giovanni Battista dating from the first half of the XIV cent. The façade is preceded by a portico built later and decorated with Della Robbia medallions.
If you still have a few minutes to dedicate to the town, we would suggest a visit to the Cappella
del Monastero delle Agostiniane to admire one of the most beautiful paintings by the Maestro della Natività di Castello, “Madonna con Bambino” (XV cent.)
Once you’ve left San Giovanni Valdarno, the itinerary leads on towards Castelfranco di Sopra and in particular to the ex- Abbazia Vallombrosana di Soffena, along one of the most chararcteristic roads of the Aretine Valdarno, the SP 1, commonly called “La Strada dei Setteponti”.
The building, in the
form of a Greek Cross, dating from the XIV cent. conserves, apart from frescoes by Bicci di Lorenzo, Liberato da Rieti and Paolo Schiavo, a prized “Annunciazione” by Giovanni di Ser Giovanni called Lo Scheggia, and a “Madonna con Bambino in trono tra Lazzaro e San Michele Arcangelo” by Mariotto di Cristofano.
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