Ospedale di San Paolo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Ospedale di San Paolo | |
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| Geography | |
| Location | Piazza Santa Maria Novella number 10, Florence, Tuscany, Italy |
| Coordinates | 43°46′22.52″N 11°14′56.82″E / 43.7729222°N 11.2491167°E |
| History | |
| Opened | 1211–1222 |
| Closed | 1780 |
| Links | |
| Lists | Hospitals in Italy |
The Hospital of San Paolo (originally Ospedale di San Paolo dei Convalescenti), later known as the Spedale of the Leopoldine, is a former hospital from the 13th century, now museum of modern works, located on Piazza Santa Maria Novella number 10, in Florence, region of Tuscany, Italy.
The hospital is thought by some to date to 1211-1222, when St Francis visited the city. At this time, the hospital was called Ospedale di San Francesco and it was run by lay-members of Franciscan order, called pinzocheri. The hospital had an abundance of patronage, and commissioned in 1403 a design (circa 1459) by Michelozzo. In 1504, the hospital of Santi Jacopo e Filippo, known as del Porcellana was merged with the San Paolo. In 1780, by order of the Grand Duke Peter Leopold II, its functions were transferred to the hospital of Santa Maria Nuova; the building was converted to a school for girls (Scuola Leopoldina).[1]
Of the original structures, the long dormitory hall, the Corsia is accessed by Via Palazzuolo. The Loggia (1489–1496) facing the piazza is supported by Corinthian columns, and was influenced by Brunelleschi's Loggia for the Foundling Hospital at Piazza Santissima Annunziata. In the spandrels are tondos of Franciscan saints by Andrea della Robbia. In the center is a bust of Ferdinando I de'Medici (circa 1594) by Pietro Francavilla. The portal to the church has a Della Robbia terracotta lunette of the Encounter of Sts Francis and Dominic [2]
In 1789, Giuseppe Salvetti replaced the dilapidated columns of the portico with new ones.[3]
