DESTINATION:
Florence & Tuscany
Florence, the bustling capital of Tuscany, may be known for its crafts - fashion, leather, metalwork and furniture - but above all it is known for the Renaissance. This extraordinary flowering of urban culture resulted in the creation of magnificent architecture, sculpture and painting, which can be seen today in the numerous churches and splendid museums. Although most of Florence dates from the Renaissance, the eastern part of the city retains a distinctly medieval air with its maze of tiny alleys and fine old buildings overlooked by the Duomo, the crowning centrepiece and symbol of Florence. Central Florence is still more or less the same small city which embodied the Renaissance, and its compact size makes it the most densely packed treasure-house of artistic riches anywhere in Italy. The city's most famous dynasty, the Medici, were the greatest patrons of the arts Europe had ever known, financing the flowering of the Renaissance and an essential part of it. Donatello, Botticelli and Michelangelo were only some of the most prolific and renowned of the artists, architects and sculptors to create the jewel that is Florence.
Recommended duration – a minimum of 4 nights/5 days
KEY VISITS (Recommended)
- UFFIZI – Italy’s greatest art gallery. The Uffizi was built between 1560 and 1580 to accommodate Duke Cosimo I’s offices (uffici). Masterpieces by every major Florentine painter are displayed here in chronological fashion, enabling the viewer to trace the development of Florentine art from Byzantine to High Renaissance and beyond. The octagonal Tribune, decorated in red and gold, contains the works most valued by the Medici family whilst the broad corridors around the inner side of the building exhibit numerous fine Greek and Roman sculptures.
- BARGELLO – constructed in the 13th century as the town hall, it has also seen service as a prison and home to the chief of police. After extensive renovations, it was opened in 1865 as one of Italy’s first national museums and now houses magnificent applied arts and sculpture, ranking second only to the Uffizi among Florentine museums. Italy’s finest collection of Renaissance sculpture includes works by Donatello, Michelangelo, Brunelleschi and Ghiberti, as well as superb bronzes by such masters as Giambologna and Cellini. Fine ceramics and rugs, beautiful early ivories, silverware and other objets d’art are among the museum’s other magnificent collections.
- GALLERIA DELL’ACCADEMIA – numerous exquisite sculptures may be seen throughout the city, but one of the principal collections is housed here, including famous and powerful works by Michelangelo, the most famous of which is David (1504).
- PALAZZO PITTI – attributed to Brunelleschi, it illustrates Pitti’s desire to upstage the powerful Medicis in a display of wealth and power. The Palatine Gallery consists of 11 main salons, 5 of which are themselves works of art, painted in the mid-17th century with allegorical frescoes glorifying the Medicis. The countless masterpieces accumulated by the Grand Dukes include works by Botticelli, Titian, Perugino, Veronese, Giorgione and Tintoretto, and are still hung much as the Medicis wished, regardless of subject or chronology. The palace also houses the state apartments, costume gallery and silverware museum. The former private gardens of the Pitti Palace, the Boboli Gardens, have been open as public gardens for the last hundred years, and yet still retain much of their former stylised Renaissance grandeur. Created in 1549, the gardens provided an arena for a display of Medici wealth and power, the grand setting for extravagant pageants and ceremonies for more than a hundred years.
- PALAZZO MEDICI-RICCARDI – a Renaissance palace created by Michelozzo for Cosimo de’Medici. The palace houses an important fresco by Luca Giordano, art works from the Medicis’ private collection, including a painting of Madonna and Child by Filippo Lippi, and the death mask of Lorenzo the Magnificent. Michelozzo’s charming Chapel of the Magi houses delightful vivid frescoes by Gozzoli, which are well preserved.
- MUSEO DELL’OPERA DEL DUOMO – where one of the primary exhibits are Ghiberti’s original panels for the doors of the baptistery.
- SANTA CROCE – the church of Santa Croce hides a wealth of 14th and 15th century masterpieces behind its neo-Gothic façade. There are radiant frescoes by Giotto and his pupil Taddeo Gaddi in the Bardi and Peruzzi chapels, and in the cloister, Brunelleschi’s Cappella de’Pazzi is a masterpiece of the Renaissance. The vast and beautiful Franciscan church contains the tombs of many famous Florentines including those of Dante and Machiavelli, the famous classical tomb of Leonardo Bruni, and the monumental tomb of Michelangelo with three figures representing Architecture, Sculpture and Painting.
- BASILICA OF SAN LORENZO – dating from the 15th century, San Lorenzo was the parish church of the Medici family and many of the principal members of the family are in fact buried here. Situated within the cloister of the church, is the Laurentian Library, containing the manuscripts and books which belong to the private library of the Medici family. It is also known as one of Michelangelo’s finest architectural achievements.
- CONVENTO DI SAN MARCO – which was founded in the 13th century, and enlarged in 1437, when Dominican monks from nearby Fiesole moved here at the invitation of Cosimo il Vecchio. The simple cloisters and cells by Michelozzo provide the setting for a remarkable series of devotional allegorical frescoes painted by Fra Angelico between 1438 and 1445. There are also two important works by Fra Angelico’s pupil, Benozzo Gozzoli.
- CHURCH OF SANTA TRINITÀ – commissioned by Vallombrosan Benedictine monks, the church was founded in the middle of the 11th century. Originally located just off the ancient city walls, it was incorporated into the city centre when the second walls were built in the 12th century.
- CHURCH OF SANTO SPIRITO – this church was the project of Filippo Brunelleschi, with building commencing in 1444. The church houses important works of art by Michelangelo (the wooden crucifix), and by Filippino Lippi and Sansovino.
- SANTA MARIA DEL CARMINE – predominantly Baroque, it replaces a 15th century church as its interior was destroyed by fire in 1771. The transept chapels from the earlier church survive, one of which is the famous Cappella Brancacci with a series of frescoes by Masaccio and his older colleague, Masolino, depicting the life of St Peter. The chapel was often visited by later artists such as Leonardo and Michelangelo, who came to study Masaccio’s pioneering work.
- SANTA FELÌCITÀ – one of the oldest churches in Florence. The Barbadori Chapel, built by Brunelleschi for the Capponi family, contains two seminal works by Pontormo, whilst the sacristy (often attributed to Michelozzo) includes paintings by Taddeo Gaddi and Francesco di Antonio.
ALTERNATIVE VISITS
- PALAZZO DAVANZATI – also known as the ‘Museum of the Florentine House’, as it was once the home of a noble Florentine family and the furnishings and décor echo the past splendour and provide the visitor with an in-depth insight into Florentine life from the 14th to the 19th centuries.
- BARDINI MUSEUM – housed inside a beautiful 19th century palazzo, the museum’s collection includes paintings, ceramics, furniture and tapestries spanning the Classical, Renaissance and Baroque periods, and was bequeathed to the City of Florence in the early 1920s following the death of Stefano Bardini, an eminent art dealer, collector and antiquarian. The terraced Bardini Gardens, spread over 4 hectares, offer magnificent panoramic views over the city.
- MUSEO STIBBERT – located on the hill of Montughi, the museum was founded by Frederick Stibbert, and features a vast collection of artefacts, predominantly armoury dating from the 15th to the 19th century.
FURTHER AFIELD
- LUCCA – enjoyed its heyday in the 12th and 13th centuries, and the most incredible and flamboyant outcrop is the exuberant Church of San Michele. The city still abounds with fortified dwellings, and the medieval quarter includes a beautifully preserved house (Torre Guinigi), the top of which affords wonderful views. The town’s encircling groves of trees trace the line of the totally intact city walls, which provide a lovely walkway around the town. A visit will include a guided tour of the old town, the Roman Amphitheatre, which is set well below the street level, and the wonderful Duomo, dedicated to St Martin. The Romanesque Duomo has a beautiful ornate façade with sculptures by Guidetto da Como and a gigantic arched 11th century campanile. The interior is rich in art, and houses the Tomb of Ilaria del Carretto and a statue of St John the Evangelist by Jacopo della Querica, Pietà by Bartolomeo di Giovanni and selected paintings by Ghirlandaio.
- SIENA – the bejewelled and gentle hilltop town, once a capital city to rival Florence, is perfectly preserved and retains much of the grandeur of the mid-13th to 14th centuries. Siena is often considered the most beautiful city in Tuscany, gracing three hills with cooling breezes in the evening. Most of its principal sights are clustered in the narrow maze of streets around the famous fan-shaped Piazza del Campo and the great Duomo and the city abounds with medieval, gothic and renaissance art and architecture. The Palazzo Pubblico, houses an excellent art collection including Simone Martini’s Maestà and Ambrogio Lorenzetti’s Effects of the Good. There are also works by Taddeo di Bartolo, Sano di Pietro and Spinello Aretino. The interior of the Palazzo contains collections of sculptures, portraits, prints, majolicas, weapons, armour and coins. This building is undoubtedly the most important public building in Siena. The Duomo of Siena is one of Italy’s greatest cathedrals; its striking black and white carved Gothic façade fronts a spectacular interior offering a mixture of sculpture, paintings and Romanesque-Gothic architecture, much influenced by Pisan style. The shell-shaped Piazza del Campo, which lies at the heart of Siena and has served as a focus for life in the city for centuries, is widely regarded as the finest medieval square in Europe and twice a year, in July and August, provides a splendid backdrop for the Corsa del Palio, a fast and furious bareback horse race dating back to the 15th century.
- VILLA TORRIGIANI (Camigliano) – dating back to the 16th century, the villa is a fine example of baroque architecture and is highly distinctive for its multi-coloured façade. The colours are obtained by a variety of materials: stone grey and tuff alternating yellow pillars and arches, marble statues of white, ochre plaster at the bottom with the upper part in white.
- PISTOIA – one of the region’s main cities, it experienced a chequered history of conflict during medieval times. The Pistoia which one finds today is far more tranquil, and a visit will focus upon the principal buildings in the town. The Pisan-Romanesque Duomo is located in the heart of the historical centre and is easily recognised by the large campanile, which was initially built as a watchtower. The interior houses several tombs and a magnificent silver altar, which has over 600 biblical statues. Close to the Duomo is the octagonal 14th century Baptistery, with its green and white marble façade. It was designed by Andrea Pisano and the doorway has carved figures of John the Baptist and St Peter. Pistoia also has several important churches, including the Chiesa di San Francesco, with frescoes by Pietro Lorenzetti, and the Chiesa di Sant’Andrea, whose pulpit is one of Giovanni Pisano’s masterpieces.
- VILLA DI POGGIO A CAIANO (near Prato) – one of the most famous of the Medici villas. Designed in 1485 by Giuliano da Sangallo for Lorenzo ‘Il Magnifico’, it was his favourite country retreat. Today, it houses two museums: one dedicated to the historic apartments and the Museum of Still-Life. A visit will also include the little 17th century theatre, and the most famous room, the Salone, designed in 1513-21 to celebrate the Medici’s return to Florence. Its magnificent frescoes are by Andrea Del Sarto, Pontormo and Franciabigio.
- AREZZO – one of Tuscany’s wealthiest cities whose prosperity is based on a thriving jewellery industry. War damage led to many of the medieval alleys being replaced by broad avenues, but Arezzo retains some outstanding sights, including the arcaded Piazza Grande by Vasari. Visits will include the 13th century Gothic-Franciscan Church of San Francesco, to view one of Italy’s greatest fresco cycles – the Legend of the True Cross by Piero della Francesca, in the apse of the Bacci Chapel. Arezzo’s State Museum of Modern and Medieval Art, housed in the Palazzo Bruni-Ciocchi del Monte has a good collection of decorative and fine arts, including frescoes by della Gatta, Aretino and della Francesca, alongside a fine array of majolica ceramics.