Lorenzo Maitani (c. 1275–1330) was the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and sculptor primarily responsible for the construction and decoration of the façade of

Orvieto Cathedral Orvieto Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Orvieto; Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta) is a large 14th-century Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and situated in the town of Orvieto in Umbria, central Italy. Since 198 ...

. Maitani established his reputation in

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

and was called to supervise the construction at Orvieto in 1308 when the unprecedented height and span of the cathedral's vaults and arches presented unforeseen difficulties. In 1310 he received the title ''capomaestro'' of the cathedral and became, in addition, overseer of bridges and civic buildings. The design of the cathedral's façade is considered to be Maitani's most important work. Though his contributions to the façade as a sculptor are difficult to determine, it may be assumed that his sensibility dictated the overall scheme. Two of the panels attributed to Maitani, "Scenes from Genesis" and "The Last Judgment," are delicate

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s unified by an ascending vine that suggests a French

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

influence. Sculptures generally attributed to Maitani include the bronze "Eagle of St. John" and the "Angel of St. Matthew."

External links

Works of Maitani
1255 births 1330 deaths Gothic architects Gothic sculptors 14th-century Italian architects 13th-century Italian sculptors Italian male sculptors 14th-century Italian sculptors {{Italy-architect-stub