The Stories of the Old Testament, started on the northern wall by Piero di Puccio between 1389 and 1391, were left unfinished for a long time: for Pisa, the early fifteenth century was a time of deep crisis, when it was defeated by Florence and fell under the rule of the Medici family. The Opera del Duomo was affected too, and it was not until the end of the century that it resumed the decoration of the building proposing it to the greatest artists of the time and finally choosing Benozzo Gozzoli in 1468.

A well-known painter, Benozzo was famous for some major commissions that he had completed in Florence, Rome and in Umbria, first working with Beato Angelico, whose pupil he had been, and then on his own. Of course he must have also been called to Pisa by archbishop Filippo de' Medici, an authoritative member of the family for whom the artist had already painted the famous cycle of the Adoration of the Magi in the chapel of the Florentine palace, in Via Larga.

Gozzoli worked for the Opera until 1484. Of what Vasari calls “a most terrible feat”, many scenes have now been lost, either totally or partially; the frescoes actually deteriorated very quickly, partly because of the technique he had used, and partly because of the exposure to the wind and the water seeping through the wall frescoed by Benozzo, the northern wall, behind which an ossuary had also been placed. Actually, as early as the beginning of the XVI century, his paintings had already been restored several times, although such restorations had done nothing to reduce the deterioration that seemed to be unstoppable in the early nineteenth century, when the experts thought that copies should be made of them. However, attempts went on to try to preserve the cycle – including taking off some parts of them which led to the loss of their relative sinopia – attempts which were finally thwarted by the fire of 1944, which unfortunately did not spare all the scenes.

List of scenes

32 The grape harvest and Noah’s inebriation, Benozzo Gozzoli
33 Cam’s curse, Benozzo Gozzoli
34 The building of the Tower of Babel, Benozzo Gozzoli
35 The Adoration of the Magi, Benozzo Gozzoli
36 The Annunciation, Benozzo Gozzoli
37 Abraham and the worshippers of Belo, Benozzo Gozzoli
38 Departure of Abraham and Lot, Benozzo Gozzoli
39 Abraham triumphant over the Assyrians, Benozzo Gozzoli
40 Stories of Agar and Abraham, Benozzo Gozzoli
41 The Fire of Sodom, Benozzo Gozzoli
42 Stories of Isaac, Benozzo Gozzoli
43 The wedding of Isaac and Rebecca, Benozzo Gozzoli
44 Stories of Esau and Job, Benozzo Gozzoli
45 Job’s dream and wedding, Benozzo Gozzoli
46 The meeting of Esau and Jacob – The Rape of Dina, Benozzo Gozzoli
48 Apostles and Saints, Benozzo Gozzoli
49 The Innocence of Joseph, Benozzo Gozzoli
50 Joseph at the Pharaoh’s Court, Benozzo Gozzoli
51 Childhood and Youth of Moses, Benozzo Gozzoli
52 The Crossing of the Red Sea, Benozzo Gozzoli
53 Moses and the Tablets of the Law, Benozzo Gozzoli
54 Story of Cora, Dathan and Abiron, Benozzo Gozzoli
55 Aaron’s Rod and bronze snake, Benozzo Gozzoli

56 The Death of Aaron and Moses, Benozzo Gozzoli
57 The Fall of Jericho – David and Goliath, Benozzo Gozzoli
58 Visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon, Benozzo Gozzoli