History The Pisan Romanesque style had sprung into popularity, "as if by magic", on a location in Pisa that later became known as Piazza dei Miracoli. In a succession, the
Pisa Cathedral (Duomo),
Pisa Baptistery, the bell tower (now known as the
Leaning Tower of Pisa),
Camposanto Monumentale di Pisa were erected there. Few precursor structures that exhibited some of the elements of the style can be pointed to (Collareta lists
Basilica of San Zeno, Verona,
San Piero a Grado, apse of the church of Santa Cristina on the left bank of the
Arno). Although these buildings introduced some features similar to the Pisan Romanesque as defined by the Duomo (long rows of blind arches under the
eaves, ceramic
bacini inside the arches, wall ornaments made of round or diamond-shaped
coffers), their connections to the Duomo, the grand "
overture" of the style, are relatively weak. The style primarily originated with construction of the
Pisa Cathedral and is credited to its architects,
Buscheto and his successor
Rainaldo. The well-defined style was popular from the 11th to early 13th century. while the Republic of Pisa was at its peak. The Pisan Romanesque style exhibited unusual longevity; some elements of it were visible in new construction in Pisa even after a switch to
Gothic architecture later in the 13th century.
Features The style successfully fused together elements that came from multiple diverse sources: • superposition of
loggias, piers and arcading came from
Lombard Romanesque; • overall plans were borrowed from the
Roman-Christian architecture; • dome of the cathedral was lifted from
Byzantine architecture; • some other features (corner niches with oval
cupola, colored marble inserts and dark stripes on the external walls) came from Byzantine or
Islamic architecture.
Influence Researchers name some notable structures immediately influenced by the original buildings on the Piazza: •
San Paolo a Ripa d'Arno, also in Pisa (a small-scale version of the Duomo); •
Santo Sepolcro, Pisa, a small-scale version of the Duomo; •
San Frediano, Pisa that borrowed from the Baptistry (and
Dome of the Rock); • multiple churches nearby:
Sant'Agata Chapel,
San Pierino,
San Frediano,
Sant'Andrea,
San Paolo all'Orto, and
San Michele in Borgo. The influence of the Pisan Romanesque spread wide beyond Pisa: • due to Pisa being an important maritime power at the time, its architecture was exported to areas then-controlled by Pisa:
Sardinia and
Corsica,
Liguria,
Apulia, and even to the shores of the
Adriatic Sea (
Marche and
Croatia); • on land, the style affected multiple location that had business ties with Pisa, in particular
Lucca and
Pistoia. The notable and geographically spread examples include parts of
Genoa Cathedral,
San Giovanni Fuoricivitas, ,
Massa Marittima Cathedral,
Troia Cathedral. ==References==