GREEK CROSS PLAN

Greek cross plan: translation

This is a type ofcentral planshaped like a cross with four arms of equal length. The first Greek cross building of the Renaissance wasLeon Battista Alberti'sSan Sebastianoin Mantua (1460), built for Duke LudovicoGonzaga. It was followed byGiuliano da Sangallo's Santa Maria delle Carceri, Prato (1484-1492), andAntonio da Sangallo the Elder's Church of the Madonna di San Biagio, Montepulciano (1518-1534). The ultimate Greek cross structure of the Renaissance was NewSt.Peter's, Rome, completed byMichelangeloin 1564 and inspired byDonato Bramante's plan of 1506.