Florence
The Flowering City of Renaissance
Florence, the capital city of the beautiful Tuscany region, was the birthplace of the Renaissance movement, which is the home of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and many other outstanding talents. Florence brings together countless treasures of human art and architecture, the most famous is the Florence Cathedral (Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore) and Michelangelo’s sculpture of David.
The Birthplace of the Renaissance
As the birthplace of the Renaissance movement, Florence from the 14th to the 16th centuries was known as the city of stars, with Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Dante Alighieri, Sandro Botticelli and Galileo Galilei, active in different fields such as painting, literature, architecture and science. Under the patronage of the Medici family, Florence also founded the first art school in Europe – the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence.
Today, Florence still retains many masterpieces of the Renaissance: the Florence Cathedral, which is an architectural wonder, the statue of David, which shows the beauty of the human body, and the Uffizi Gallery, which collects masterpieces such as The Birth of Venus. They represent the pinnacles of Renaissance architecture, sculpture and painting.
Florence Cathedral
The Marvelous Great Dome
Florence Cathedral, with a dome that spans 45 meters, is a marvel of architectural history. The 16th-century vault was painted by Vasari and Zuccari, and the church has an octagonal baptistery in front and an 85-meter-high Giotto's Bell Tower on the south side.
Gallery Of The Academy Of Florence
Michelangelo's David
The Gallery of the Academy of Florence, founded in 1784, is part of the Florentine Academy of Fine Arts. The museum has a collection of sculptures, paintings and musical instruments, and its crowning glory is the statue of David, created by Michelangelo in 1504.
Uffizi Gallery
Treasures of Renaissance Art
The Uffizi Gallery is located on the north bank of the Arno River in Florence, adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria. It is one of the world's top art museums, with a collection of paintings and sculptures by Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and other Italian Renaissance artists.
The Medici Family
The Medici family of Florence was one of the most prominent families in Europe. They started in banking and quickly amassed a fortune, with three popes in the family. The Medici family owned large estates in Florence, such as The Old Palace (Palazzo Vecchio) as their residence, the Pitti Palace and the Uffizi Gallery. They also built a Vasari Corridor for convenience, which led from the Uffizi Gallery on the north bank of the Arno, via the Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio), to the Pitti Palace (Palazzo Pitti) and the Boboli Gardens on the south bank.
Palazzo Vecchio And Piazza della Signoria
Fountain Sculptures and Palace Towers
The Old Palace of Florence, also known as Palazzo Vecchio, was the residence of the Medici family in the 16th century, with the Hall of the Five Hundred and a 94-meter-high bell tower. Outside the Old Palace is the famous Piazza della Signoria, with the Loggia dei Lanzi, the Neptune Fountain, and the Equestrian Monument of Cosimo I near it.
Ponte Vecchio
Shops Built along the Old Bridge
The Ponte Vecchio, also known as the Old Bridge, is the oldest stone bridge over the Arno River in Florence, built in 1345. The Ponte Vecchio has many shops built on the bridge body, mostly gold, silver, and jewelry stores. There is also a Vasari Corridor built above the Ponte Vecchio.
Palazzo Pitti
The Medicis' Renaissance Palace
Situated south of the Arno River in Florence, the Palazzo Pitti was built in the 15th century by the banker Luca Pitti and was used as the residence of the Medici family. Palazzo Pitti has a vast collection of artworks and brilliant architecture such as Boboli Gardens.
Boboli Gardens
The Iconic Italian Palace Garden
The Boboli Gardens were built by the Medici family in the 16th century as an annex to the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. The garden is built on a hill and is filled with precious and rare species of trees, fountains, and sculptures, and is a most important model of Italian gardens.
Uffizi Gallery
Treasures of Renaissance Art
The Uffizi Gallery is located on the north bank of the Arno River in Florence, adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria. It is one of the world's top art museums, with a collection of paintings and sculptures by Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and other Italian Renaissance artists.
Churches and the Art of Painting
Florence has countless churches, most of which retain collections of Renaissance paintings and sculptures. For example, the dome painting The Last Judgment by Vasari in the Florence Cathedral, the chapel frescoes by Giotto and his apprentices in the Basilica of the Holy Cross (Basilica di Santa Croce), and the Holy Trinity on the wall of the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella, which is still the subject for art students to learn and copy every day.
Florence Cathedral
The Marvelous Great Dome
Florence Cathedral, with a dome that spans 45 meters, is a marvel of architectural history. The 16th-century vault was painted by Vasari and Zuccari, and the church has an octagonal baptistery in front and an 85-meter-high Giotto's Bell Tower on the south side.
Basilica di Santa Croce
Burial Place of Illustrious Italians
The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Florence was built in 1294 as a Franciscan church. The church has a large number of paintings and sculptures from the 13th to 15th centuries, and is also known as the Pantheon of Italian Glories, because Michelangelo, Galileo, and other famous people are buried here.
Basilica Of Santa Maria Novella
14th and 15th Century Fresco Collection
The Basilica of Santa Maria Novella, located in front of the Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway station, was built in the 14th century as a Catholic Dominican church. It consists of a chapel, cloisters, and monastery complex, and is rich in frescoes, represented by the Holy Trinity, a pioneering early Renaissance artwork.
