Official Language:
Italian
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Currency:
EUR
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Population:
Approximately 400,000 people call Florence home.
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Weather:
Climate and current weather information for Florence Italy: The climate of Florence offers summers that can be hot and humid with an average daytime highs in in the 80's°F/27°C. Spring and Autumn offer cooler temperatures and a chance to see blooming at it's best.
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Florence was founded as a colony of the Etruscan city of Fiesole in about 200 BC, later becoming the Roman Florentia, a garrison town controlling the Via Flaminia. In the early 12th century the city became a free comune and by 1138 it was ruled by 12 consuls, assisted by the Council of One Hundred, a bunch of rich merchants. In 1207, due to intractable problems with faction fighting, the council was replaced by a foreign (and thus allegedly unbiased) governer, the podestà. In the 13th century the pro-papal Guelphs and pro-imperial Ghibellines started a century-long bout of bickering, which wound up with the Guelphs forming their own government in the 1250s. By 1292 Florence nobles were excluded from government. The city became increasingly democratised, eventually becoming a commercial republic controlled by the Guelph-heavy merchant class.
Mary McCarthy famously described Florence (Firenze) as a "City of Stone." This assessment digs deeper than merely the fact that the buildings, streets, doorjambs, sidewalks, windowsills, towers, and bridges are all cobbled together in shades of gray, stern rock hewn by generations of the stonecutters Michelangelo grew up with. Florence's stoniness is evident in both its countenance and its character. Florentines often seem more serious and slower to warm to strangers than the stereotypical Italians. The city's fundamental rhythms are medieval, and it's fiendishly difficult to get beyond the touristy surface and see what really makes Florence tick. Although the historic center is compact, it takes time and effort to get to know it personally, get the hang of its alleys, and understand the deep history of its palace-lined streets. The cultural and historical impact of Florence (or Firenze if you're looking to impress) is overwhelming. Close up, however, the city is one of Italy's most atmospheric and pleasant, retaining a strong resemblance to the small late-medieval centre that contributed so much to the cultural and political development of Europe.
Its striking buildings, formidable galleries and treasure-crammed churches attest to the Florentine love of display. Even long after it had been eclipsed on the political and economic fronts, Florence upheld its elegant appearance: and its skyline, with its russet rooftops and lofty domes, is indeed picturesque. Florence was the birthplace of the European Renaissance in the 14th Century. By the time it ended, an entire continent had been ushered through the Dark Ages and into a vibrant world full of indescribable artistic beauty. The achievements of the Renaissance have been preserved and lovingly cared for by the city, and today a visit to Italy is not complete without paying homage to Florence.
The glory of Florence is rooted in its past. The Medicis commanded the city's fortunes for centuries and, as patrons, they encouraged the Renaissance's influence on the city. They are attributed in today's Florence: their family crest of six balls still adorns many public buildings and their support of many artforms is evident in the city's streets. The Medici family was largely responsible for the flourishing of Florence (Firenze in Italian). Through their leadership and patronage, artists like Botticelli and Michelangelo were encouraged to produce masterpieces like the Birth of Venus and David. Advancements in architecture, the likes of which hadn't been seen before in Europe, led to the construction of the Duomo's dome and Grotto's bell tower. But before you think that Florence is a city trapped in the past, know that it is a highly modernized Italian town, with most locals navigating the swamped city streets with cell phones in hand. They are sometimes exasperated by the influx of tourists, particularly in the summer, but they have come to accept tourism as a necessary evil that provides a healthy boom to the Florentine economy.
Florence has also emerged as one of the leading shopping and dining destinations in Italy, if not in all of Europe. While Milan and Rome best Florence in the sheer number of shops and restaurants, respectively, a case can be made for Florence's quality, especially when it comes to Florentine leather and jewelry, or Tuscan wine. A word about street addresses in Florence. Visitors are often confused because addresses seem to overlap. The city has designated that commercial enterprises be numbered in red, and all others in black. All addresses listed in this guide are in black unless otherwise noted. Be sure to purchase a map while in town to help you get around.
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Attractions |
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Cruise ships dock at the Port of Livorno, with transportation available at the dock to take you into the heart of Florence. Although Florence is a large metropolitan city, the city's layout allows for a majority of attractions to be viewed on foot. There are many pedestrian-only zones in the area, and signs posted everywhere to direct you to various attractions. Make sure to wear comfortable walking shoes, as you'll be covering lots of ground. Taxis (tel. 055/4390) are ubiquitous, especially in the vicinity of the larger tourist attractions. Buses are also everywhere, but routes change almost daily, and if you're not careful, you'll end up on the wrong route. Bicycles and scooters are available for rent, but only for people who are very confident in their riding abilities. The streets of Florence are difficult to maneuver, and sometimes it seems like traffic is coming at you from every direction.
Bargello Museum:
The Bargello Museum contains the most comprehensive range of medieval and Renaissance sculpture in Italy. Notable works include Michelangelo's drunken Bacchus, Donatello's David, the designs submitted by Brunelleschi for the Baptistry Doors Competition (Ghiberti won that one) and Giambologna's Mercury. The Bargello's heavily fortified exterior is a reminder of the building's former life as police headquarters and prison where many people were tortured in medieval times.Adjacent to the Museum is the Mary Magdalene's chapel which contains frescoes by Giotto's workshop.
Battistero (Baptistery):
In choosing a date to mark the beginning of the Renaissance, art historians often seize on 1401, the year Florence's powerful wool merchant's guild held a contest to decide who would receive the commission to design the North Doors of the Baptistery to match the Gothic South Doors cast 65 years earlier by Andrea Pisano. The era's foremost Tuscan sculptors each designed and cast a bas-relief bronze panel depicting his own vision of The Sacrifice of Isaac. Twenty-two-year-old Lorenzo Ghiberti, competing against the likes of Donatello, Jacopo della Quercia, and Filippo Brunelleschi, won hands down. He spent the next 21 years casting 28 bronze panels and building his doors. Although limited by his contract to design the scenes within Gothic frames as on Pisano's doors, Ghiberti infused his figures and compositions with an unmatched realism and classical references that helped define Renaissance sculpture. (Ghiberti stuck a self-portrait in the left door, the 4th head from the bottom of the middle strip, wearing a turban.)
The result so impressed the merchant's guild -- not to mention the public and Ghiberti's fellow artists -- they asked him in 1425 to do the East Doors, facing the Duomo, this time giving him the artistic freedom to realize his Renaissance ambitions. Twenty-seven years later, just before his death, Ghiberti finished 10 dramatic life-like Old Testament scenes in gilded bronze, each a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture and some of the finest low-relief perspective in Italian art. The panels now mounted here are excellent copies; the originals are displayed in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo . Years later, Michelangelo was standing before these doors and someone asked his opinion. His response sums up Ghiberti's life accomplishment as no art historian ever could: "They are so beautiful that they would grace the entrance to Paradise." They've been called the Gates of Paradise ever since. The Baptistery is one of Florence's oldest, most venerated buildings. Florentines long believed it was originally a Roman temple, but it most likely was raised somewhere between the 4th and 7th centuries on the site of a Roman palace. The octagonal drum was rebuilt in the 11th century, and by the 13th century it had been clad in its characteristic green-and-white Romanesque stripes of marble and capped with its odd pyramid-like dome. The interior is ringed with columns pilfered from ancient Roman buildings and is a spectacle of mosaics above and below. The floor was inlaid in 1209, and the ceiling was covered between 1225 and the early 1300s with glittering mosaics. Most were crafted by Venetian or Byzantine-style workshops, which worked off designs drawn by the era's best artists. Coppo di Marcovaldo drew sketches for the over 7.8m (26-ft.) high, ape-toed Christ in Judgment and the Last Judgment that fills over a third of the ceiling. To the right of the altar is the 1425 wall tomb of Antipope John XXIII, designed by Michelozzo and Donatello, who cast the bronze effigy of the deceased, deposed pontiff. http://www.operaduomo.firenze.it
Duomo:
You will probably already have spotted Brunelleschi's sloping, red-tiled dome - predominant on Florence's skyline – from afar, but when you first come upon the Duomo (cathedral) from the crowded streets around its square (Piazza del Duomo) you will doubtless be taken aback by the ordered vivacity of its pink, white and green marble façade.
Brunelleschi won a public competition to design the enormous dome, the first of its kind since antiquity. Although now severely cracked and under restoration, it remains a remarkable achievement of design.The great temple's full name is Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore and it is the world's fourth-largest cathedral. It was begun in 1296 by Arnolfo di Cambio and took almost 150 years to complete. It is 153m long and 38m wide, except the transept, which extends 90m. The cathedral it replaced, dedicated to Santa Reparata, fitted into an area extending less than halfway down from the entrance to the transept.
Piazza della Signoria:
A massive holding tank for tourists (if you want space, bring a bicycle bell), the city's most splendid piazza was created virtually by accident in the 13th century and - lined with replicas of famous sculptures and historical buildings - has been the hub of Florentine political life ever since. In times of political crises, the public would be summoned here for popular votes, which usually decided the fates of conflicting families and frequently descended into frenzied riots. Emotions would be stirred up by political speeches delivered from an arringhiera (oration platform) in front of Palazzo Vecchio, from where we get the word 'harangue'. Nowadays it's predominantly tourists who make up the mob, sipping coffee at overpriced restaurants, snapping away at the famous scenes, or posing in front of Ammannati's Mannerist Fountain of Neptune, a waste of a perfectly good block of marble, according to Michelangelo. Cellini's Perseus, holding Medusa's severed head, served to warn Cosimo I's enemies of what would happen should they cross the line, and is the finest original work on the piazza.
Piazza San Lorenzo:
This lovely area recalls Florence in its prime, when Cosimo de' Medici was king and cultural creativity abounded. San Lorenzo Basilica was begun by Brunelleschi in 1425 and is regarded as one of the city's purest Renaissance churches. The eastern façade is especially interesting, as it is sparsely decorated and reveals the antique brickwork. It was the Medici family's parish church, and many of the members of the family are buried here. Donatello designed the bronze pulpits, and he is buried in one of the chapels. Passing through the cloister, you reach the Laurenziana Library, commissioned to house the family's huge collection of books and featuring a sublime staircase by Michelangelo. The Medici Chapels are sumptuously decorated with precious marble and semiprecious stones; the most powerful Medicis were buried here. The New Sacristy was designed by Michelangelo and contains his Night and Day, Dawn and Dusk sculptures.
Pitti Palace:
One of the most visited sites on the southern bank of the Arno, this palace was designed by Brunelleschi for the Pitti family, rivals of the Medicis. It's a huge and imposing building, and a treasure house of the Medici family's massive art collection including works by Raphael, Filippo Lippi, Tintoretto, Veronese and Rubens, all hung in lavishly decorated rooms. The restored apartments convey the extravagant lifestyles of the Medicis, and the Savoys who later usurped their position. The palace also houses a gallery of modern art and a costume collection. If you're a palazzo addict, don't miss the Strozzi Palace, one of the city's most impressive Renaissance palaces; and the Rucellai Palace, designed by Leon Battista Alberti, and today housing a photographic museum.
Surrounding the rear of the Pitti Palace are some of Florence's most precious and breathtaking parks: the Boboli Gardens. A perfect example of formal Renaissance landscaping, the gardens include pools, fountains, geometric borders, tree-lined vistas, a grotto and the star-shaped Forte di Belvedere. If you've got the energy, it's worth heading down Via del Belvedere to reach Piazzale Michelangelo, which offers one of the most beautiful views over Florence.
Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge):
The oldest and most famous bridge across the Arno, the Ponte Vecchio we know today was built in 1345 by Taddeo Gaddi to replace an earlier version. The characteristic overhanging shops have lined the bridge since at least the 12th century. In the 16th century, it was home to butchers until Cosimo I moved into the Palazzo Pitti across the river. He couldn't stand the stench as he crossed the bridge from on high in the Corridorio Vasariano every day, so he evicted the meat cutters and moved in the classier gold- and silversmiths, tradesmen who occupy the bridge to this day. A bust of the most famous Florentine goldsmith, the swashbuckling autobiographer and Perseus sculptor Benvenuto Cellini, stands off to the side of the bridge's center, in a small piazza overlooking the Arno. From this vantage point Mark Twain, spoiled by the Mighty Mississippi, once wryly commented, "It is popular to admire the Arno. It is a great historical creek, with four feet in the channel and some scows floating about. It would be a very plausible river if they would pump some water into it. They call it a river, and they honestly think it is a river . They even help out the delusion by building bridges over it. I do not see why they are too good to wade."The Ponte Vecchio's fame saved it in 1944 from the Nazis, who had orders to blow up all the bridges before retreating out of Florence as Allied forces advanced. They couldn't bring themselves to reduce this span to rubble -- so they blew up the ancient buildings on either end instead to block it off. The Arno flood of 1966 wasn't so discriminating, however, and severely damaged the shops. Apparently, a private night watchman saw the waters rising alarmingly and called many of the goldsmiths at home, who rushed to remove their valuable stock before it was washed away.
Santa Croce:
If you experience a peculiar giddy feeling after visiting the Church of Santa Croce, don't despair. It's probable that you've succumbed to Stendhal's Disease, an illness diagnosed in about 12 visitors to Florence each year, and dating from the French writer's own feelings of culture shock and bedazzlement when he visited the church in the early 19th century. Geometrically coloured marble decorates the building's façade (added in the 19th century), but the real treats lie inside, where many famous Florentines lie in peace. The walls are lined with tombs, and 276 tombstones pave the floor. The church's most famous inhabitants are Michelangelo, Macchiavelli, Galileo and Bardi. Its various chapels feature works of art by Giotto and della Robbia, and the serene cloisters were designed by Brunelleschi. Santa Croce's museum features a partially restored crucifix by Cimabue, which was damaged by the 1966 floods. Other churches which shouldn't be missed include the statue-filled Orsanmichele; Santa Trinità , featuring frescoes by Ghirlandaio; All Saints', with frescoes by Botticelli and Ghirlandaio; Santa Maria Novella, which contains Masaccio's groundbreaking Trinity, along with other significant artworks; the popular SS Annunziata; Giambologna's remodelled San Marco; and the Church of the Holy Spirit, one of Brunelleschi's last commissions, and featuring Filippino Lippi's Madonna & Child. Make a date to see Michelangelo's David at Accademia Gallery. It's extraordinary to see in the flesh, along with the other masterpieces; Botticelli, Fra Bartolommeo and Giambologna, to name a few.
Santa Maria della Carmine:
Following a 1771 fire that destroyed everything but the transept chapels and sacristy, this Carmelite church was almost entirely reconstructed and decorated in high baroque style. Ever since a long and expensive restoration of the famous frescoes of the Cappella Brancacci in the right transept, they've blocked off just that chapel and you have to enter through the cloisters (doorway to the right of the church facade) and pay admission. The frescoes were commissioned by an enemy of the Medici, Felice Brancacci, who in 1424 hired Masolino and his student Masaccio to decorate it with a cycle on the life of St. Peter. Masolino probably worked out the cycle's scheme and painted a few scenes along with his pupil before taking off for 3 years to serve as court painter in Budapest, during which time Masaccio kept painting, quietly creating one of his masterpieces and some of the early Renaissance's greatest frescoes. Masaccio left for Rome in 1428, where he died at age 27. The cycle was completed between 1480 and 1485 by Filippino Lippi, who faithfully imitated Masaccio's technique.
Even before Lippi's intervention, though, the frescoes had been an instant hit. People flocked from all over the city to admire them, and almost every Italian artist of the day came to sketch and study Masaccio's mastery of perspective, bold light and colors, and unheard-of touches of realism. Even later masters like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo came to learn what they could from the young artist's genius. A 1980s restoration cleaned off the dirt and dark mold that had grown in the egg-based pigments used to "touch up" the frescoes in the 18th century and removed additions like the prudish ivy leaves trailing across Adam and Eve's privates. Masolino was responsible for the St. Peter Preaching, the upper panel to the left of the altar, and the two top scenes on the right wall, which shows his fastidiously decorative style in a long panel of St. Peter Healing the Cripple and Raising Tabitha, and his Adam and Eve. Contrast this first man and woman, about to take the bait offered by the snake, with the Expulsion from the Garden across from it painted by Masaccio. Masolino's figures are highly posed models, expressionless and oblivious to the temptation being offered. Masaccio's Adam and Eve, on the other hand, burst with intense emotion and forceful movement. The top scene on the left wall is also by Masaccio, and it showcases both his classical influences and another of his innovations, perfect linear perspective. On the end wall, Masaccio painted the lower scene to the left of the altar of St. Peter Healing the Sick with His Shadow, unique at the time for its realistic portrayal of street beggars and crippled bodies. The two scenes to the right of the altar are Masaccio as well, with the Baptism of the Neophytes taking its place among his masterpieces. Most of the rest of the frescoes were painted by Filippino Lippi. The left transept chapel, which isn't blocked off, is one of Florence's most harmonious examples of the baroque (1675-83), with a ceiling painted by Luca Giordano.
Fiesole:
Nestled in the hilly valleys between the Arno and Mugnone rivers, beautiful Fiesole offers spectacular views of nearby Florence (8km to the south) and is a welcome fresh-air retreat from the city bustle. The city readily reveals its Etruscan, Roman and Renaissance past, and in summer it has attracted the likes of Boccaccio, Proust, Gertrude Stein and Frank Lloyd Wright. Fiesole has a duomo, an impressive art museum and an archaeological site featuring an Etruscan temple and the remains of a Roman theatre and baths. It is especially popular as a picnic spot, and its fascinating winding streets offer atmospheric walks.
Medici Villas:
The Medicis built several opulent villas throughout the countryside around Florence during the 15th and 16th centuries. The Villa della Petraia, about 3.5km north of the city, is one of the finest. It was commissioned by Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici in 1576, and features magnificent gardens. The Villa Medicea di Castello, farther north, was the summer home of Lorenzo the Magnificent, and the Villa di Poggio a Caiano was a more permanent base, built for Lorenzo by di Sangallo about 15km from Florence.
Mugello Region:
The Mugello features some of the most original villages in Tuscany. The Sieve River, which winds through the grape-filled valley, is popular with canoeists. The Mugello is very popular with walkers, trekkers, climbers and horse riders. Sights to look out for include the strategically positioned Montesenario Convent and the wine town of Rufina, with its viticulture museum.
Prato:
Although relatively distant, Prato has been caught up in the urban and industrial sprawl of the big city. Prato was founded by the Ligurians but was taken over by the Etruscans and the Romans. In the 11th century it was an important wool-production centre, and today it is still one of Italy's major textile producers. The old, walled city is fortunately an intact historic island in the industrial surrounds. It features palaces, the impressive municipal art gallery and a magnificent cathedral, with a façade by della Robbia and frescoes by Filippo Lippi, Uccello and Daddi; the cathedral houses the Virgin's girdle, which in the painting by Daddi looks similar to a hippie's handbag. The centre also features an imperial castle, built during the 13th century
The Uffizi Gallery:
See the world’s greatest collection of Italian masterpieces. Such artists as Giotto, Michelangelo, Raphael, Caravaggio, Titian and Rubens are represented -- as is Botticello’s famous “Birth of Venus”. It is suggested that visitors make reservations and purchase tickets in advance. Reserv online at www.selectitaly.com.
Shopping:
Florence offers just about anything you might want to buy including linens, leather goods, jewelry, ceramics, leather items, paintings, straw goods, and art reproductions. The cream of the crop of Florentine shopping lines both sides of the elegant Via de' Tornabuoni, with an extension along Via della Vigna Nuova and other surrounding streets. Here you'll find big names like Gucci, Armani, Ferragamo, and Mila Schön ensconced in old palaces or modern minimalist boutiques. On the other end of the shopping spectrum is the haggling and general fun of the colorful and noisy San Lorenzo street market. Antiques gather dust by the truckload along Via Maggio and other Oltrarno streets. Another main corridor of stores somewhat less glitzy than those on the Via de' Tornabuoni begins at Via Cerretani and runs down Via Roma through the Piazza della Repubblica area; it keeps going down Via Por Santa Maria, across the Ponte Vecchio with its gold jewelry, and up Via Guicciardini on the other side. Store-laden side tributaries off this main stretch include Via della Terme, Borgo Santissimi Apostoli, and Borgo San Jacopo. General Florentine shopping hours are daily from 9:30am to noon or 1pm and 3 or 3:30pm to 7:30pm, though increasingly, many shops are staying open through that mid-afternoon riposo (especially the larger stores and those around tourist sights).
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More Information |
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Useful Links About Florence:
Florence Travel Information
www.weekendafirenze.com
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