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PhrasesVisiting a ChurchLe vetrate sono medievali?
B2

Le vetrate sono medievali?

Are the stained glass windows medieval?

Pronunciation

leh veh-TRA-teh SO-noh meh-dee-eh-VA-lee.

When to use it

When admiring stained glass windows and curious about their age and origin. Italian churches have stained glass ranging from medieval masterpieces to modern works.

What it means

Le vetrate are the stained glass windows (literally 'large glass works'). Medievali is the plural adjective meaning medieval. Italian church windows range from twelfth-century Romanesque to contemporary commissions by modern artists.

Variations

Chi ha realizzato queste vetrate?

Who made these stained glass windows?

Asking about the maker or artist.

Come si producono le vetrate artistiche?

How are artistic stained glass windows produced?

About the manufacturing technique.

La luce attraverso le vetrate cambia durante il giorno?

Does the light through the windows change during the day?

Asking about the effect of light throughout the day.

Mini Dialogue

— Le vetrate sono medievali? — Alcune sì — del Trecento. Le finestre laterali sono del Novecento. — Si vede la differenza? — Sì, quelle medievali hanno colori più intensi e figure piatte. — L'effetto della luce è straordinario.

— Are the stained glass windows medieval? — Some are — from the fourteenth century. The side windows are from the twentieth century. — Can you see the difference? — Yes, the medieval ones have more intense colours and flat figures. — The effect of the light is extraordinary.

Cultural Note

The Cathedral of Siena has some of Italy's finest medieval stained glass, created by Duccio di Buoninsegna in 1288 — the same artist who painted the famous Maestà altarpiece. Italy has fewer medieval stained glass windows than France because Italian Romanesque architecture preferred solid walls with frescoes to the large window openings of Gothic architecture.