On August 19, 1418, a competition was announced in the Republic of Florence, a city-state in Italy. The competition offered 200 florins (more than two years’ salary for a skilled craftsman) for whoever could come up with a plan to complete the dome (the cupola) atop the city’s cathedral. The Opera del Duomo, the office of works in charge of the cathedral, sought a way to finish an ambitious project which had been under construction for nearly 100 years.

By the early 1400s, the Republic of Florence was one of the most prosperous cities in Europe. The city’s booming wool industry flooded the public coffers and inspired a wave of building projects. Beside the unfinished cathedral, a large octagonal baptistry and a 280-foot tower had already been constructed in the piazza del duomo. The cathedral was intended to be one of the “largest in Christendom” (3), a way to loudly announce the city’s newfound status and importance. For 50 years, a 30-foot-long scale model of the cathedral’s design was situated on the worksite. The model was treated with almost religious reverence. This model included a dome which, if realized, would be the largest and widest vault ever raised.