An unknown commission of Giovanni della Robbia: the San Basilio Tabernacle for the Florentine Compagnia dello Spirito Santo

During the early decades of the 16th century the Florentine terracotta sculptor Giovanni d'Andrea della Robbia (1469-1529) was a prolific member of the della Robbia workshop. This article reports on the discovery of two documents relating to a terracotta tabernacle for which Giovanni was commissioned in 1519 by a prominent Florentine confraternity. The discovery provides a first glimpse of an important sculpture, while the story of the San Basilio Tabernacle also furnishes testimony on the history of the Florentine convent and church of San Basilio, which was the meeting place for the work's patron, the Compagnia dello Spirito Santo, until 1785. An appendix reproduces the newly discovered documents.