Foundations Reading 9B

Chap 18

Reading 9B THE GREAT DOME OF FLORENCE In 1419, a clockmaker named Filippo Brunelleschi started work on a very difficult project. He was building the dome of Florence's main cathedral, the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. For 1,500 years, the world's largest dome belonged to the Pantheon in Rome. Brunelleschi's job was to build one even larger. The building of the cathedral began in 1296. By 1359, much of it was complete, but no one knew how to build its dome. Many builders could build concrete domes. However, the dome in Florence needed to be wider than any dome ever built. A concrete dome would be too heavy and would easily fall. The cathedral, therefore, remained unfinished for many years. Filippo Brunelleschi promised to find a solution. He said he would build two domes, an inner dome made of stone and an outer one made of light bricks. He would use lighter materials as he worked upwards. Strong rings made of stone, wood, and iron would hold everything together. Brunelleschi also had to find a way to lift the materials high into the air. What did he do? He invented a new machine to do the job. Building the dome took 16 years. Brunelleschi had done something no one else could. However, he left no pictures of his design. So—even today—experts don't fully understand how this incredible structure was built.

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