born 1409, Settignano, Republic of Florence
died Sept. 23, 1464, Florence
Italian architect and sculptor.
Influenced by Donatello , Filippo Brunelleschi , and Luca Della Robbia , he developed a moderately Classical style. His tomb for Leonardo Bruni (1444–50) in Santa Croce, Florence, was one of the greatest achievements of early Renaissance sculpture and inaugurated a new type of sepulchral monument. Its fine balance between sculpture and architecture, figure and decoration, made it the prototypical niche tomb of its time. He also designed the apse of St. Peter's Basilica and the cathedral and Piccolomini Palace in Pienza (1460–64). He presumably trained his brother Antonio (1427–79), who regularly assisted him.