Work on the ornate colored marble facade of the Certosa di Pavia, begun by Giovanni Antonio Amadeo in 1490, had been interrupted in 1519 as work was going forward by the condition of French occupation in Lombardy after the War of the League of Cambrai, when French troops were encamped round the Certosa.

Work on the facade had not resumed until 1554, when a revised design under the direction of Cristoforo Lombardo had been approved for the completion of the facade above the second arcade, where marble intarsia is substituted for the rich sculptural decorations of the lower area.

Completed in 1560, some final details are added by Galeazzo Alessiis.