Only one was built in Rome, and modest at that, gothic church (Santa Maria sopra Minerva). Yet the relatively few construction projects undertaken in Italy during this period are remarkable. Siena Cathedral is perhaps the most magnificent Gothic cathedral in Europe, and the beautiful facade is decorated with very ingeniously and meorthodox sculptures. The Florentine cathedral became famous in the world thanks to its Renaissance dome, but it is essentially a very innovative gothic construction, which gained its final shape in the mid-fourteenth century. Free-standing campanile. devoid of buttresses and lined with colored marble and reliefs, it proves the uninterrupted interest of Italians in this form. In the Cathedral of Orvieto, the Italian version of Gothic is in its most extreme form: the architecture of the interior is simple, in a spirit similar to that of an early Christian basilica. on the other hand, the façade surpasses even that of Siena in terms of ornamentation, with their narrative reliefs, brightly colored marble and mosaics. Only at the Duomo of Milan, started at the end of the 14th century, but finally not completed until the nineteenth century. typical forms dominating in northern European cathedral architecture were used, certainly partly because, that German masons took part in the construction. But even here, shiny white marble and a distinctly geometrical shape are typical Italian features.
The scale of this project clearly inspired the builders of the Monastery of Cetosa in Pavia. one of the largest monastic complexes in the country. Here, however, attention has been paid to the changing artistic tastes and, as a result, has moved away from its gothic roots. San Petronio in Bologna, started in a similar period, it was a parish church rivaled and surpassed by any cathedral in Italy in length. However, work was stopped at the moment, when the nave was still unfinished. Another original project worth mentioning, arose a hundred years earlier, is the pilgrimage church of II Santo in Padua. It is built on an essentially gothic plan, including the infirmary surrounded by a wreath of French-style chapels. However, the facade is modeled on the Lombard Romanism. and the seven great domes are evidence of attachment to the Byzantine tradition.
In the field of defensive architecture, the most powerful 11th-century castles were erected in southern Italy by Emperor Frederick II. the most impressive of which is the famous Castel del Monte, which combines classical and gothic elements on a monotonously regular plan, with towers, outer walls and an octagonal courtyard. Frederick's Castle in Lucera was transformed in the second half of the century by the Anjou. who also built Castel Nuovo in Naples - converted into a palace in the following centuries.
From the construction of the 14th-century Fortezza in Volterra, it is one of the first examples of a medieval castle perched high on a hill, with a cylindrical tower, round towers, massive surrounding walls and machicolation. Buildings in Mantua stand out from the palatial fortresses that began in this period. Ferrara and Verona, the latter is protected by a strongly fortified bridge over the Adige River.
Another famous Gothic bridge in Italy is completely different, Ponte Vecchio in Florence, with a line of jewelry stores on both sides.
At the end of the thirteenth century, an increase in the sense of civic pride created a fashion for building large-scale town halls, often topped with a slender tower. The most impressive are the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena and the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. Also in these cities, as well as in others in central Italy, it is teeming with patrician tenement houses. The most characteristic mansions in the whole country, however, were built in Venice. The most sophisticated is Ca'd'Oro, while Ca’ Foscari and Palazzi Giustinian compensate for the lack of finesse with monumentality. All of them were modeled on the most famous palace in Italy. Ducal Palace. It is probably the most magnificent European secular building from this period, ingeniously combining Gothic and Islamic style in its shape, while in the courtyards and in the interiors, classical influences are visible.