Santa Maria Novella Church

Address: Piazza di Santa Maria Novella, 18, 50123 Firenze FI, Italy

Website: https://www.santamarianovella.org

Santa Maria Novella is the Dominican church of Florence, begun in the mid-13th century and completed and remodelled over subsequent centuries. Its façade was finished in the 15th century to a design by Leon Battista Alberti.

Interior spaces include a long nave lined with side chapels containing fresco cycles and altarpieces from the 14th and 15th centuries. Key works include Masaccio’s early Renaissance fresco showing the Holy Trinity and frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandaio in the Tornabuoni Chapel.

Constructed by the Dominican order beginning in the 1200s, the complex was progressively enlarged and redecorated during the Renaissance, with major architectural and artistic commissions through the 15th century. It has remained an active church and repository of significant artworks.

Located a short walk from Florence’s Santa Maria Novella station and the historic center, the church sits on the Via del Magnifico axis between principal city landmarks.

• Façade by Alberti: The church’s façade was completed to a design by Leon Battista Alberti in the 15th century and is a frequently cited example of Renaissance architectural theory applied to a medieval façade.
• Notable artwork: Masaccio’s Holy Trinity (1427) is a well-known fresco located in the left transept and is an early example of linear perspective in painting.

What to See#

• Nave and chapels: The nave and façade combine Gothic and early Renaissance elements; the painted and sculpted chapels inside contain major fresco cycles and altarpieces from the 14th and 15th centuries.
• Cloisters and chapels: The cloisters and side chapels preserve important frescoes and tombs that reflect the church’s Dominican patronage and Renaissance patronage networks.

Santa Maria Novella church sits directly in front of Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway station in central Florence. If you arrive by train, you exit the station and the church and its piazza are immediately outside - no additional transit or long walk required.

If driving, follow signs to the city center and the main station (parking in central Florence is limited; public transit or walking from parking areas is recommended).

• Arrive shortly after opening to beat the long lines that form later in the morning, especially in high season and on market days near the station.
• Buy the combined ticket for the Santa Maria Novella complex so you can visit the church, cloisters, chapter house and the historic pharmacy (Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica) all at once.
• Don't skip the Spanish Chapel and the cloistered spaces - their fresco cycles and quieter rooms are less crowded but contain key artistic and historical highlights of the complex.