ROBBIA, Andrea della
(b. 1435, Firenze, d. 1525, Firenze)

Tondo

c. 1487
Glazed terracotta
Ospedale degli Innocenti, Florence

The Hospital of the Innocents is one of the first buildings produced by the Renaissance, a masterpiece designed by Brunelleschi and erected by him between 1421 and 1424. The hospital was constructed as a refuge for orphans and abandoned children. Its nine harmonious arches are decorated with terracotta tondoes by Andrea della Robbia, which depict babies symbolically seeking the charity of Florence's rich.