Church of Santa Maria della Spina
Description:
The Church of Santa Maria della Spina is one of the main attractions of Pisa. The Gothic church, erected in the Middle Ages on the banks of the Arno River, became a monument of European Gothic, showing the most striking signs of this architectural style.
The church of Santa Maria della Spina was built on the sandy bank of the river in 1230.
The facade of the building is made of multi-colored marble, and the niches are decorated with sculptural images of Christ, the Virgin Mary and angels. The right side of the temple is literally cut with floral ornament, numerous niches and turrets. The statues for the temple were made by several generations of Pisa masters, including the forerunners of the Italian Renaissance Giovanni di Balduccio and Nicolo Pisano - perhaps the most striking representative of Pisa art.
The name of the church comes from the word “spina”, which means “thorn”. Since the XIV century, this small church has kept one of the main shrines of Italy - a thorn of the crown of thorns of Christ.