<Tr> <Th> Reference no . </Th> <Td> 174 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> State Party </Th> <Td> Italy </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Region </Th> <Td> Europe and North America </Td> </Tr> <P> The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore (Italian pronunciation: (katteˈdraːle di ˈsanta maˈriːa del ˈfjoːre); in English "Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Flower") is the main church of Florence, Italy . Il Duomo di Firenze, as it is ordinarily called, was begun in 1296 in the Gothic style with the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi . The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th - century Gothic Revival façade by Emilio De Fabris . </P>

Why was the florence cathedral considered a failure