San Michele in Foro

San Michele in Foro, St Michael on the forum - the old Roman marketplace, is the second most important church in Lucca to the cathedral. Also it dates from the 12th century ( from 1143 ). The architect was Diotisalvi ( Major: Guidetto da Como ).

The exterior cladding and façade were built from 1200 for a higher planned nave, to which it then did not - hence the disproportionate amount of the facade compared to the church behind it.

In the late 13th century the nave and aisle walls were bricked up later. At the two outer sides of the nave it created an innovation in the Tuscan architecture. The lower floor is designed exactly like the churches in Pisa and Lucca before, namely with a bow the displayed position. In but there are now no more fading up, but that which had been previously been performed only on the upper facade bullets: a separately placed before the church wall decoration layer - a dwarf gallery.

Through this transfer of the facade principle to the nave wall of uniform overall appearance of the church is emphasized and the hitherto customary discrepancy prevents between the radiant ' front page and the' simple ' other church walls.

The facade shows - like that of the Domes - a rich structure diversity in the columns, the wedge zones and the cornices. S. Michele in foro is one of the most magnificent examples of this typical Tuscan design.

Here too, right outside a node column next two columns, whose shafts are formed of figures. About the capitals there are sculptures of heads. The capitals show itself partly animal and plant forms. This enormous diversity of forms has in numerous details also symbolic meanings.