(b Siena, fl 1392; d ?Perugia, after 27 July 1434). Italian sculptor and architect. First mentioned in 1392, he was paid for executing a frieze in Siena Cathedral in 1398. Between 1407 and 1425 he served as capomaestro of the workshop at Orvieto Cathedral. He made the octagonal cover for the baptismal font and also worked on the Cappella Nuova in the cathedral. Sano's individual style is difficult to isolate, since he often worked in collaboration with other Sienese masters. On 10 November 1413 he contracted with Jacopo della Quercia to carve marble elements for the Fonte Gaia in Siena, and in 1416, while still documented as working on the Fonte Gaia, he was also working on the baptismal font in the Baptistery in Siena together with Nanni da Lucca and Giacomo di Corso (c. 1382-after 1427), colleagues with whom he seems to have collaborated on many projects. Sano is also documented in 1428 as one of many masters who assisted in the decoration of the Loggia di S Paolo in Siena. The precise nature of his contribution to these commissions, however, is not specified. As architect and engineer, Sano was involved with the construction of the fa?ade of S Fortunato, Todi, during the early 1430s, and was also responsible for the building of canals and wells in Perugia in 1425-6. He is last mentioned on 27 July 1434 when he had completed work on a vault in the Campione in Perugia.
See the Abbreviations for further details.
The Concise Grove Dictionary of Art. Copyright © 2002 by Oxford University Press, Inc.. All rights reserved.