The oldest Church of Florence

The oldest and one of largest church of Florence is  the Basilica of San Lorenzo.

The monument started as a simple Romanesque structure, built in 393. Several centuries later, the Medicis lavished its funding on this church in the center of Florence to make it the influential family's parish church. They completely restyle and rebuild the church into a Medici’s legacy.

The overall effect of the design is one of symmetry that uses arches and columns to provide order and balance, a hallmark of Brunelleschi's designs as well as the overarching feature of the Renaissance in general. The facade has never been finished, while Michelangelo submitted several plans that would have faced it in Carrara marble.

Brunelleschi was given the commission for the overall design. The dome at San Lorenzo caps the Cappella dei Principi, which is the Medici mausoleum behind the altar. The frescoes and mosaic flooring are splendid. The New Sacristy, was designed by Michelangelo, who also designed  the gorgeous Laurentian Library, built to house the Medici's extensive collection of manuscripts and books.

While the extravagant chapels are the main monuments for the Medici family, a simple marker in front of the altar signals the modest grave of Cosimo, the patriarch of the Medici dynasty.