Pisa: Porta di San Ranieri

The Annunciation by Bonanno Pisano

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Lying in the shadow of the Torre Pendente (Leaning Tower) and ignored by almost every tourist is the Porta di San Ranieri. The beautiful bronze doors (which are situated in the right transept of the Duomo) were created towards the end of the 12th century by Bonanno Pisano (active in the 1170s and 1180s).

The two doors are made up of twenty-four panels, most of which illustrate episodes from the life of Christ. However, the two bottom rectangular panels each depict six prophets, while the two top panels illustrate Christ in Glory and Mary in Glory. 

​By some miracle the doors survived a terrible conflagration, which engulfed the Duomo during the night of October 24th/25th, 1595. 

The doors have been replaced by copies; the originals can be found in the nearby Museo dell' Opera del Duomo.

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The Porta di San Ranieri

The Three Magi