The story of the day has two foci: Santa Maria Novella, and the Duomo. We struck out early to be sure to get into S. Maria Novella in good time to have a lunch before proceeding to the Duomo, and our timings were perfect. What we had not prepared for was the extent to which Santa Maria Novella bulged at the seams with Dominicana. During our day in Milan, Margaret had indulged my wish to visit St Eustorgio’s, where the Portinari Chapel shelt4ers the relics of St Peter of Verona a/k/a Peter of Milan a/k/a Peter Martyr, a saint to whom I have a particular devotion; I thought I’d completed my Peter Martyr quest line there, but I was taken aback to see Peter prominently featured in several areas of St Maria Novella, too, including some familiar images. Add in a lot of Thomas Aquinas and the obligatory Dominic images, and I was positively overwhelmed with Dominican sentiment.
We had a light lunch in the shadow of Santa Maria, then trundled off to the Duomo, where we were edified if not spellbound by the excavated fragmentary recovery of Santa Reparata below the main floor of the Duomo. Then we ascended to the main floor, but were only permitted access to the central aisle, which was somewhat disappointing. The exterior, though, is breathtaking, and it’s free with no time limits, so we made the most of that. We also visited the baptistery (mostly closed for restoration) and the Museo (amazing, but by then we were lagging).
Crossed the Ponte Vacchio, looked at the exterior of St Mark’s English Church, and drifted home.