Santa Maria del Fiore

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flower), or simply il Duomo di Firenze, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome (right) designed by Filippo Brunelleschi, a masterpiece of engineering. The exterior of the basilica was not completed until the 19th century, when a Gothic Revival façade was added. The cathedral complex also includes the Baptistery (Battistero di San Giovanni) and Giotto's Campanile (left).

Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence, 1924, black-and-white photograph, photographer: Walter Möbius; source: © SLUB Dresden / Deutsche Fotothek Dresden / Walter Möbius, data record 72028346, http://www.deutschefotothek.de/gallery/freitext/72028346.