There’s a very modest church I walk by at least 3 or 4 times a week. It is usually closed when I am ambling by. But on this beautiful spring day it was open and I availed myself, for the first time ever, I think. At least I can’t recall having visited it before. Anyway, the visit was well worth the time!
In the pictures below, you can get a sense for how modest this church is, compared to the many that I show on this site.
Over a few future posts I will be revealing the glories of the interior, which are much less modest than you might expect. But in this first post on the church, I will show you a few of the bulletins posted in the church, because I think it is always interesting to see what the church wants the parishioners to be aware of.
Above: Holy Week is coming. Very important for the church! The Holy Week services at Santa Croce are detailed in this modest parish church. Santa Croce, the very important Franciscan church, is quite nearby.
Alcoholic Anonymous. Yes, even in Italy it is an issue.
A market that provided its proceeds for the poor.
Confessions available in Italiano o inglese.
And finally, some historical info on the church itself.
From this we learn that the church is named for Saint Ambrose, the Bishop of Milan, who stopped at this site in 393. A chapel for a convent of Benedictine nuns was built here as early as the 7th century, and the location of the church itself has been been dated to the 11th century at least. This location was outside the first city walls of Florence, until the erection of the Arnolfo circle of walls dating to 1284-1310.
In 1230 a miracle allegedly occurred in the church. Frate Uguccione failed to dry the chalice after mass and the following day found that the wine had turned to blood. Sant’Ambrogio thus became a pilgrimage site; the miraculous liquid was placed in an ampulla and housed in a marble tabernacle made by Mino da Fiesole.
Renovations were made both inside and outside the church in the 15th, 17th and 18th centuries.
There are some very artistic/culturally significant burials within the church, including, Verrochio, Simone dell Pollaiolo called Cronaca, and Mino da Fiesole and others.
get back, lauretta! 
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