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Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: POL-PRE |
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PRATO , a town and episcopal see of Tuscany, Italy, in the province of Florence, 11 m. by rail N.W. of Florence, 207 ft. above sea-level. Pop. (1906), 20,197 (town); 55,298 (commune). It is situated on the Bisenzio, and is dominated by a medieval castle and surrounded by walls of the 11th and 14th centuries. The cathedral of St Stephen was begun in the 12th century in the Tuscan Romanesque style; to this period belongs the narrow nave with its wide arches; the raised transepts and the chapels were added by Giovanni Pisano in 13171320; the campanile dates from 1340 (it is a much smaller and less elaborate version of Giotto's campanile at Florence), while the facade, also of alternate white sandstone and green serpentine, belongs to 1413. It has a fine doorway with a bas-relief by Andrea
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capital . The contract was given out in 1428, but the work was seriously begun only in 1434 and finished in 1438. The Chapel of the Girdle has good frescoes by Agnolo Gaddi (1365), a statue of the Virgin by Giovanni Pisano, and a handsome bronze open-work screen. The frescoes in the choir, with scenes from the life of St John the Baptist and St Stephen, are by Fra Filippo Lippi (14561466) and are his best work; the dance of Salome and the lying in state of St Stephen are the finest of the series . Among other works of art may be mentioned the clay statue of the Madonna dell' Ulivo by Benedetto da Maiano. The massive old Palazzo Pretorio (13th century) has been somewhat modified in details; the adjacent Palazzo Comunale contains a small picture gallery1 This combination of characters for many years led systematizers astray, though some of them were from the first correct in their notions as to the Pratincole's position. Linnaeus, even in his latest publication, placed it in the genus Hirundo; but the interleaved and annotated copies of his Systema naturae in the Linnean Society's library show the species marked for separation and insertion in the Order GrallaePratincola trachelia being the name by which he had meant to designate it in any future edition. He seems to have been induced to this change of view mainly through a specimen of the bird sent to him by John White, the brother of Gilbert White; but the opinion published in 1769 by Scopoli (Ann. I. hilt. naturalis, p. i io) had doubtless contributed thereto, though the earlier judgment to the same effect of Brisson, as mentioned above, had been disregarded. Different erroneous assignments of the form have been made even by recent
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dome ; it is a fine work, and the decoration of the exterior in marble of different colours (unfinished) is of a noble simplicity. Some remains exist of the 13th-century fortress, and the large Piazza Mercatale is picturesque. The works of art visible in Prato are due, as will be seen, entirely to Florentine artists. As a whole the town has a somewhat modern aspect. The industries of Prato embrace the manufacture of woollens (the most important), straw-plaiting, biscuits, hats, macaroni, candles, silk, olive oil, clothing and furniture, also copper and iron works, and printing.Prato is said to be first mentioned by name in 1107, but the cathedral appears as early as 1048 as the parish church of Borgo Cornio or Santo Stefano. It was subject to the Alberti until 118o, and was then under the Imperial supremacy. It appears to have freed itself from this at the end of the 13th century. In 1313 the town acknowledged the authority of Robert, king of Naples, and in 135o Niccola Acciajoli, seneschal of Joanna
See E. Corradini, Prato (Bergamo, 1905). End of Article: PRATO If you wish, you can link directly to this article.
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