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    Dome of Florence Cathedral

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    SARANSH GUPTA
    Filippo Brunelleschi designed the octagonal brick dome for the Florence Cathedral, known as the Duomo. At over 100 meters high, it was the largest dome built at the time without external supports. To construct it, Brunelleschi had to invent lifting machines and techniques to hoist materials into place. He used a pointed shape reinforced by ribs and chains to allow the dome to span its width without collapsing under its massive weight, solving major engineering challenges of the project. The dome became a iconic masterpiece that marked the transition from medieval to Renaissance architecture.

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    Dome of Florence Cathedral

    Uploaded by

    SARANSH GUPTA
    99 views2 pages
    Filippo Brunelleschi designed the octagonal brick dome for the Florence Cathedral, known as the Duomo. At over 100 meters high, it was the largest dome built at the time without external supports. To construct it, Brunelleschi had to invent lifting machines and techniques to hoist materials into place. He used a pointed shape reinforced by ribs and chains to allow the dome to span its width without collapsing under its massive weight, solving major engineering challenges of the project. The dome became a iconic masterpiece that marked the transition from medieval to Renaissance architecture.

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    structural analysis

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    Dome Of Florence Cathedral

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    Filippo Brunelleschi designed the octagonal brick dome for the Florence Cathedral, known as the Duomo. At over 100 meters high, it was the largest dome built at the time without external supports. To construct it, Brunelleschi had to invent lifting machines and techniques to hoist materials into place. He used a pointed shape reinforced by ribs and chains to allow the dome to span its width without collapsing under its massive weight, solving major engineering challenges of the project. The dome became a iconic masterpiece that marked the transition from medieval to Renaissance architecture.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    99 views2 pages

    Dome of Florence Cathedral

    Uploaded by

    SARANSH GUPTA
    Filippo Brunelleschi designed the octagonal brick dome for the Florence Cathedral, known as the Duomo. At over 100 meters high, it was the largest dome built at the time without external supports. To construct it, Brunelleschi had to invent lifting machines and techniques to hoist materials into place. He used a pointed shape reinforced by ribs and chains to allow the dome to span its width without collapsing under its massive weight, solving major engineering challenges of the project. The dome became a iconic masterpiece that marked the transition from medieval to Renaissance architecture.

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    Dome Of Florence Cathedral

    Ÿ Filippo Brunelleschi, the first great architect of the Renaissance, worked primarily in

    churches. His most famous masterpiece is the octagonal brick dome he designed

    for Florence Basilica (an Italian Gothic church), an engineering feat of such difficulty

    (due to the dome's unprecedented size) that he also had to invent special machines to

    hoist each section into place.

    Ÿ This dome is the most famous transitional work

    between Medieval and Renaissance architecture

    Cathedral of santa maria

    Ÿ Although at first glance it appears to be very much

    a Gothic dome (given its pointed shape and ribbed

    frame)5, it is considered a transitional work due to

    Brunelleschi's attention to balanced proportions

    and simple decoration. It is crowned by a lantern,

    a rooftop structure with openings for lighting or

    ventilation.

    Ÿ Is an octagonal dome higher and wider than any

    that had ever been built, with no external buttresses

    to keep it from spreading and falling under its own

    weight.

    Ÿ The drum or base of the dome was already in place

    before Brunelleschi received the assignment to

    complete it.

    Ÿ The span of the octagonal drum was 140 feet, a

    very large span for a dome at that time, especially

    one without the possibility of external buttressing or

    supports.

    Ÿ Brunelleschi knew that a hemispheric dome (one

    which is perfectly rounded) would not be able to

    span this distance without the use of external buttresses.


    Ÿ As a result, he decided to make a pointed dome.

    He placed 8 major ribs at the points of the octagon,

    and 16 minor ribs (two in the space between every

    two major ribs), all tied together by lateral bands.

    Ÿ The spreading problem was solved by a set of four internal horizontal stone and iron

    chains, serving as barrel hoops, embedded within the inner dome: one each at the top

    and bottom, with the remaining two evenly spaced between them. A fifth chain, made

    of wood, was placed between the first and second of the stone chains. Since the dome

    was octagonal rather than round, a simple chain, squeezing the dome like a barrel

    hoop, would have put all its pressure on the eight corners of the dome. The chains

    needed to be rigid octagons, stiff enough to hold their shape, so as not to deform the

    dome as they held it together.

    Ÿ To lift 37,000 tons of material, including over 4 million bricks, he invented hoisting

    machines and lewissons for hoisting large stones. These specially designed machines

    and his structural innovations were Brunelleschi's chief contribution to architecture.

    Ÿ The lantern was finally completed by Brunelleschi's friend Michelozzo in 1461. The

    conical roof was crowned with a gilt copper ball and cross, containing holy relics,

    by Verrocchio in 1469. This brings the total height of the dome and lantern to 114.5

    metres (375 ft).

    Ÿ Brunelleschi’s design features a double-walled ovoid shell anchored at the bottom by a

    15 meter high tambour eliminating the need for scaffolding and reinforcement. The

    dome is 44 meters in diameter and 113 meters high topped by a lantern that is

    accessed by a stairway between the interior and exterior walls of the dome. Florence

    Cathedral is commonly known simply as The Duomo because of the beauty and

    magnificence of Brunelleschi's design and its striking impact on the skyline of Florence

    Saransh Gupta

    2C

    180BARCH007

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