The debate about the completion of the Cathedral of Milan during the eighteenth century. Innovation and continuity with regard to aesthetical, lexical, and theoretical issues

The question of the completion of the Cathedral of Milan was debated intensively for around two centuries and attained new topicality in the first half of the eighteenth century in Habsburg Italy. At the time, the evaluation and ap- preciation of ancient architecture became a central theme, especially in Italy: A new conception of the “past” developed while archaeology as a science was im- proved and professionalised, resulting in art conventions being recognised in their specificity. Significant impulses in this regard came from the dispute about the Milan cathedral’s completion, which was being pursued by the Habs- burg/Austrian government and the ecclesiastical authorities. The debate revolved around evaluation of the “Gothic” heritage, and major protagonists of the Italian architectural scene including Luigi Vanvitelli, Francesco Croce, and Filippo Ju- varra were called upon to express their opinions. Analysis of the respective docu- ments – letters, reports, drawings, and notes – gives rise to aesthetical, lexical, and theoretical questions, and comparison of the drafts submitted for consider- ation reveals different attitudes concerning the reconciliation of “past” and “pre- sent” languages of architecture.