San Lorenzo, Library, Ricetto, portal from cloister, elevation; plan (recto) San Lorenzo, Library, Ricetto, portal from cloister, section; details (verso)
early to mid-16th century
Medium
Dark brown ink, black chalk, and incised lines
Dimensions
sheet: 17 1/8 x 11 5/8 in. (43.5 x 29.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Janos Scholz and Anne Bigelow Scholz, in memory of Flying Officer Walter Bigelow Rosen, RCAF, 1949
Accession Number
49.92.35
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite architectural drawing, created by an anonymous French artist the early to mid-th century, captures intricate details of the Laurentian Library (Biblioteca Laurenziana) at the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence. The recto features an elevation and plan of the ricetto—a grand vestibule—and the portal leading from the cloister, while verso offers a section view and finer details. Such precise renderings reflect the era's fascination with Michelangelo's innovative design for the library, commissioned by the Medici family around 1520, blending classical harmony with Mannerist drama....