Cappella Brancacci

"Designed in honor of "Virginia del Carmine" (Saint Mary of Mount Carmel), the Church of Santa Maria was built in 1268 as part of a convent of Carmelite nuns and expanded in the following centuries. In the second half of the 18th century, the church was almost completely destroyed by a fire that fortunately did not reach the Brancacci Chapel. The Brancaccis were an old Florentine family and at the end of the 14th century they bought a family chapel in the church of Santa Maria del Carmine. However, it was not until the early years of the 15th century that the decoration of the chapel began, entrusted to the studio of Masolino, which also included the famous Renaissance painter Masaccio. The two divided the works and began painting the chapel with the theme of the Stories of Saint Peter. The work, however, was interrupted by the exile of the Brancacci family, enemies of Cosimo de Medici. The expulsion lasted until 1480, when the family had their name cleared and regained possession of their properties, including the chapel. They then continued the work on the interior, which was then entrusted to Filippino Lippi, another great Renaissance painter and a student of the famous Sandro Botticelli. During the 16th century, the Brancacci family went into decline, but no one wanted to buy the chapel. After some restorations and modifications, a fire in 1771 caused serious damage to the entire structure. The chapel was then restored again along with the church and only in 1780, with the resignation of the Brancacci family (by this time fleeing to France under the new name De Brancas), was it acquired by the Riccardi, another very old Florentine family of German origin."

"Often referred to as the "Sistine Chapel of the early Renaissance," the chapel is celebrated for its fresco cycle by Masaccio and Masolino."