This is a reproduction of the model for the dome surmounting Florence Cathedral (Santa Maria del Fiore) executed by Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446). Although the construction of the octagonal opening of the Cathedral (some 42 metres) was complete by 1412/13 the dome itself was not finished until 1436. Brunelleschi had produced drawings for the dome in 1417. A wooden model on which the finished dome was based - possibly that held in the Museo dell' Opera del Duomo in Florence, from which the present reproduction is taken - was executed and submitted as a joint effort to the Cathedral Works by Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378-1455) and Filippo Brunelleschi. Although the dome was begun in 1420 under the supervision of both Ghiberti and Brunelleschi, it was Brunelleschi who subsequently took control of the scheme and saw the project through to its completion in 1436. The dome represents a great architectural feat and is considered one of the greatest domes ever constructed. The present model was presented to the Museum in 1971 by Professor Otello Caprara of the Pinacoteca Nazionale in Bologna. Made in the early 1970s, it is a faithful reproduction of the original wooden model. The gift was almost certainly made in recognition for the conservation assistance given by the V&A to the Bargello and Museo dell'Opera del Duomo following floods.