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Santi Simone e Giuda

Now the Ukranian Greek Catholic Church

Interior of the church

Hidden away in the lanes around the Teatro Verdi, this church dates back to 1243, built over an over oratory belonging to the monks at the Badia Fiorentina. After damage in the Arno flood of 1527, it was slowly restored over the course of the 17th century, at one point the funds supplied by a kinsman of Galileo, Bartolomeo Galilei, who was also a Knight of Malta. Gherardo Silvani, responsible for the renovations, went about it Vasari-style, destroying all its 14th-century frescoes.

Recently the facade and fresco over the door of the Madonna flanked by the Apostles Simon and Jude has been restored, neither of which prepare you for Silvani's lavish green and gold ceiling. It has some un-memorable paintings by Francesco Granacci and the tomb of Raffaellino del Garbo and a new iconostasis, put in place by the Ukranian Greek Catholics who currently use the church for services.

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Via dei Lavatoi 3

+39 055 284789

Churches, Cloisters and Convents

Text © Dana Facaros & Michael Pauls

Image by Sailko, GNU Free Documentation License