May 11th 2026 the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore presented the new general scientific catalog of the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo (Mandragora publisher, 2026), edited by Timothy Verdon and Rita Filardi. It is the first official scientific catalog in the history of the Museum since its inauguration in 1891.
The work is divided into four volumes in a bilingual edition (Italian and English):
Volume I: Retraces the history of the Museum, of the Opera and the building, including the archaeological finds and the sculptural apparatus of the medieval façade.
Volume II: It focuses on the painting of the 13th-15th centuries and on the figures of Donatello and Filippo Brunelleschi.
Volume III: Explores the works of Luca della Robbia, the doors of Lorenzo Ghiberti, the sacred goldsmithery and textile vestments of the Museum.
Volume IV: It documents the grand ducal period between the 16th and 19th centuries, with particular attention to Michelangelo's Pietà, to portraiture and historical projects for the Cathedral façade.
ArtesMechanicae contributed with the drafting of the section relating to the construction site tools, within Volume II. The contribution, thanks also to the collaboration of the Polytechnic of Turin, puts forward new hypotheses on the dating and construction techniques of some of the most significant instruments preserved by the Museum.
