Sacristy and Novitiate
The south transept of the basilica leads into the sacristy and the Novitiate. The latter was the area reserved for those preparing to enter the order.
It was built as a part of a vast project for the reconstruction and expansion of the convent undertaken after a fire in 1423 had destroyed the friars' old dormitory. The new area, probably designed by Michelozzo and built between 1435 and 1445, was paid for in full by Cosimo de' Medici whose crest can still be seen adorning the walls.
The Novitiate Corridor, the Medici Chapel and the Well Room were renovated in 2014 to house a series of paintings which are considered difficult to move due to their size or their fragility and thus protect them from the risk of flood damage. These paintings had previously been on display in the museum, where they suffered in the flood of 1966 because the museum is situated on the same level as the square and is thus subject to flooding, while the Novitiate wing is on a higher and thus a safer level.
It houses works of varying origin from projects in the complex that have now been dismantled, as well as paintings from convents suppressed during the Napoleonic domination that entered Santa Croce after 1810 and other works moved here following the 19th century demolitions in the centre of Florence.