Duomo di San Gimignano

Images of hell, saints, and the zodiac painted by Sienese artists surround the entrance of Duomo di San Gimignano (San Gimignano Cathedral), also known as Collegiata di Santa Maria Assunta (Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary). Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Vaulted ceilings in Duomo di San Gimignano, also known as the Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Vaulted nave in Duomo di San Gimignano, also known as the Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Frescoes and black and white marble line the nave of Duomo di San Gimignano, also known as the Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Chapel ceiling with stained glass and angel heads in Duomo di San Gimignano (Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary). Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Vaulted nave of Duomo di San Gimignano (Collegiate Church of the Assumption of Mary). Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Stunning ceilings of Ferrara

Detail of the Treasure Room ceiling in Palazzo Costabili (aka, Palazzo di Ludovico il Moro), Ferrara. Fresco by Benvenuto Tisi, called il Garofalo, from 1506. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Italy has no shortage of richly painted ceilings (see previous posts about Florence, Siena, Ravenna, and Vicenza for examples), but these frescoed wonders seem especially concentrated in Ferrara, where several Renaissance-era palazzos have opened their doors as public museums. The result is an almost overwhelming presence of densely decorated interiors that compliment, and even compete with, the eye-level displays.

Mirror reflecting one of many frescoed ceilings in Castello Estense, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Ceiling of the Ducal Chapel in Castello Estense, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Ceiling in Palazzo Costabili (aka, Palazzo di Ludovico il Moro), Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Loggia degli Aranci (1560–70), Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Renaissance-Baroque interior of Chiesa di Santa Maria in Vado, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Castello Estense, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Detail of the Treasure Room ceiling in Palazzo Costabili (aka, Palazzo di Ludovico il Moro), Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Detail of a ceiling in Palazzo Costabili (aka, Palazzo di Ludovico il Moro), Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.

Chiesa di Santa Maria in Vado, Ferrara. Photo by Renée DeVoe Mertz.