Mystery in San Lorenzo

The city of Florence satisfies many curiosities, but it also holds many mysteries that we have not been able to unravel yet.
The Basilica of San Lorenzo is a church that was very dear to the ‘de Medici family, so dear that they chose it as burial place. Inside the Sagrestia Vecchia (Old Sacristy) of that church, there is a painting that perfectly and accurately depicts the night sky over the city of Florence of July 4 1442, with all the zodiacal signs. The reason why the painting shows that particular night sky is still unknown. The painter who did the artwork was Giuliano D’arrigo (1367-1446), known as Pesello, under the guidance of the great astronomer Paolo dal Pozzo Toscanelli. Experts observed the work of art and wondered whether it could be related to a birth, a political agreement, the arrival of René of Anjou or an unwritten agreement during the reunification of the Eastern Churches with the Church of Rome in 1439, event that ended the Great Schism. The Council of Florence (1439) brought to the city the most famous experts in medicine, sciences and astronomy from all around the world, under the approval of the Patriarch of Constantinople, Joseph II (who died in June 10, 1439 and was buried in Santa Maria Novella), Pope Martin V, and his successor Pope Eugene IV.
What if July 4, 1442 was the date when Renaissance officially began? Constellations and astronomical lines are so accurately painted it seems a modern photo. In 1986, the Arcetri observatory, leaded by professor G. Forti, carried out a study that confirmed that the painting shows the night sky between the 4th and the 5th of July 1442. The study also showed that there are other similar vaults, one of which is in the Pazzi Chapel in Santa Croce. Once again, the plot thickens: what was the reason to paint that particular night sky in two important churches that belonged to the two most powerful families of Florence? Families that by the way had always been fighting against each other (see the Pazzi conspiracy, for example) to gain the hegemony of the city. The only thing that is certain so far is that we need to wait for the mystery to be solved.

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