Basilica di Santo Spirito

Behind a simple plaster facade lies one of Brunelleschi’s last and greatest works. Designed in 1434, the church’s light-flooded nave is lined by a series of semicircular chapels, while the colonnade of grey Corinthian columns lends a grandeur that is at once harmonious and severe. While a fire in 1471 destroyed much of the art, the church does harbour several masterpieces, including Filipino Lippi’s Madonna con il Bambino e Santi (Madonna with Child and Saints) in the Cappella Nerli in the right transept. And in the sacristy there’s a poignantly tender wooden crucifix attributed to Michelangelo with a rare depiction of Christ’s penis. Beneath the central dome, the altar is a voluptuous baroque flourish that is rather out of place in the sparse setting of Brunelleschi’s church. Note that opening hours of the church are notoriously erratic.