Looking
up while busy admiring the spectacular statues of the Loggia dei Lanzi including the statue of Perseus holding the head of
Medusa (1555) by Benvenuto
Cellini, you might have missed to notice the beautiful bas-relief placed
right at the base of this statue.This
square bronze bas-relief depicting
an episode...
El 18 de febrero Florencia celebra a una mujer muy especial, a quien debemos la salvaguardia de nuestro patrimonio artístico: Anna Maria Luisa dei Medici, conocida también como Elettrice Palatina.
Anna Maria era hija de Cosimo III y Margherita Luisa d’Orleans. Su matrimonio fue muy infeliz, sin embargo no les...
Florence has changed its appearance
many times over the centuries, and a great number of buildings was lost due to
demolitions and renovations. This is the case of the Church of San Pier Maggiore, of which only traces of the arches of
the external portico of the church remain in...
Many
are the anecdotes and legends regarding the city of Florence, Piazza Duomo
alone is the protagonist of several of these interesting stories. Today we'll
tell about you some of them.
The
fall of the Duomo’s golden sphere was
indeed a shocking event.
We must start by saying that designing...
Every city has its own ghosts, and Florence certainly could not be
the exception. There are stories about sightings of spirits in the
Tuscan capital, like the one of Palazzo Budini-Gattai or Ginevra degli
Almieri. The story we're going to tell you today is about one of the
most famous:...
Walking down the streets
of Florence you might have seen them: tiny arched shaped doors on the walls of
buildings in the city center. Many wonder what they are, even some florentines
don't know their history.
They are called "buchette
del vino" (litterally "wine holes"), closed with little
wooden doors...
Have you ever heard a Florentine say: “San Giovanni non vuole inganni" (Saint John doesn't allow deceit)? This saying is often used in situations where someone has tried to trick somebody else and the other person found out, or they don't believe the lie told. Where does this saying come from?...
While taking a stroll at
the Cascine Park, a very peculiar
structure might have caught your eye. We are talking about the pyramid that can be found along the tree-lined
avenu, looking rather out of place in the Tuscan capital.What on earth is a pyramid doing in Florence? Well,
it...
The Arno river has always been a faithful friend to the Florentines,
allowing the proliferation of numerous activities along its banks, exploiting
every resource it made available. In particular, a city with an intense
building activity like Florence, needed a great quantity of building material,
and it is precisely to...
Florencia es bella incluso bajo la lluvia, pero cuando resplandece bajo el sol de la primavera, se vuelve algo espectacular. Entonces hay que salir absolutamente a dar un paseo en el centro, o a lo largo de la orilla del río Arno, o mejor aún, ir a visitar uno de...
Florence is a city that has always done things
a little in its own way, as demonstrated by the fact that for 168 years it
celebrated the New Year on a different day than the rest of Italy.
The Florentine New
Year is celebrated on 25 March, the date
corresponding...
Si estarán en Florencia el 26 de enero, podrán ver una guirnalda de flores en la base de la columna de Piazza Duomo – bueno, si notan esta columna en primer lugar. Mucha spersonas, incluidos los florentinos, pasan por ahí cada día, sin caer en cuenta de la presencia de...
If you have been to
Piazza Santissima Annunziata you might have noticed a window that remains open
all year round, whether it’s summer or winter, so much so that the Florentines
have renamed it "the window that is
always open". It is located on
the top floor of Palazzo Grifoni,...
Visiting Florence in August has its
downsides. Around the second week of the month, you will find yourselves
walking the almost deserted city streets looking for a bar, restaurant or
grocery shop that does not display the sign "CHIUSO PER FERIE" (closed for the holidays).
That’s because most Florentines -...
A good observer will discover that in Florence there are several
astronomical instruments scattered around the city, not only great
breeding ground for artists but also for scientists and scholars.
In ancient times, to know the time people used the sundial, a
measurement tool based on the detection of the...
Florence is full of
mysteries and there is no shortage among them of stories about ghosts, witches
and devils. Here is an unbelievable story, perhaps the most famous one, and
what makes it so disturbing is that it is actually a true story, although
several versions exist today.
It is...
It may happen that
looking for the address of a shop becomes confusing for those coming from
outside Florence, because in the Tuscan capital a differentiation is made
between the house numbers, written in black, and those of commercial
activities, marked with red numbers.
The origins
The civic numbering in...
Red, black, brown, white and ochre were part of the color palette artists used in cave paintings. The first pigments, invented about 40,000 years ago, were a combination of soil, animal fat, burnt charcoal, and chalk, but since then, the number of colors available to the artists has continued to...
In Italy as in many other Western countries, comics are still considered by most to be a product for children, as we are used to the fact that storytelling with pictures is found in fairy tales and children’s books. In particular the Japanese manga, that uses images often consisting of...
The "Scoppio del Carro" (Explosion of the Cart), is an event that
takes place every year on Easter Sunday, and it dates back to the first
Crusade.
Legend has it that the first to climb the Jerusalem walls was a
Florentine named Pazzino, member of the noble Pazzi family. He...
Whether installed to celebrate an event, a personality of relevance
for the city or just to decorate a piazza, Italian cities have always
loved their fountains. Florence is no exception. There are many
beautiful fountains scattered around the city, so let's see some of the
most famous and unique fountains...
Entre las curiosidades de Florencia siempre se cuentan las
abejas de Ferdinando, increíblemente difícil de contar. Quien logre contarlas
sin tocarlas ni marcarlas, será bendecido con suerte. Veamos de qué se trata.En el centro de Piazza SS. Annunziata encontramos el monumento
de bronce del Gran Duque Ferdinando I dei Medici...
You might have noticed that lions are everywhere in Florence. Have you wondered why?
They are guarding Palazzo Vecchio and the Loggia de Lanzi, they are on
the weathervane on top of the Arnolfo Tower, they are represented in
coat of arms, in paintings, and even the bases of lamplights...
¡Aléjate del mundanal ruido! Si vas a asistir a
uno de nuestros cursos, tómate un descanso y haz un recorrido por --- Villa Fabbricotti.Diez minutos a pie de la
Piazza della Libertà, en via Vittorio Emanuele II, un hermoso espacio verde,
una lujosa villa en la cima de la colina...
¿Por qué
Florencia, que es considerada la ciudad del arte, no tiene un museo, un centro de
arte contemporáneo que puede organizar exposiciones y importantes eventos como
otras grandes ciudades italianas? Ciertamente sus esfuerzos se dirigen
principalmente a cultivar el pasado, tanto culturalmente como comercialmente,
teniendo un inmenso patrimonio que...
As fireplaces disappeared from the houses, the florentine,
and tuscan in general, tradition of the “Ceppo” (Christmas stump) has also
gradually been lost. The elders called the day of Christmas and Santo Stefano
"Ceppo" and "Ceppino", referring to this very tradition.
The Christmas stump had a profound meaning, of strength...
A diez minutos a pie de la terminal del autobús nº 20, en
el borde este de la ciudad se encuentra el Parco del Mensola, que lleva el
nombre del arroyo que lo cruza, que baja de Fiesole. Es un gran espacio abierto
de 20 hectáreas con carriles peatonales y...
Woe to speak ill of Florence to a Florentine,
you could trigger a very heated discussion. Florentines have always been known
for their patriotic spirit, proud of their city and their origins. We can't
blame them after all, considering that in the past Florence has really played a
key role...
La villa y el gran parque eran una de las residencias privadas
de la familia Strozzi, construida a mediados del siglo XVI por Giovan Battista
di Lorenzo Strozzi. Los Strozzi eran una familia de banqueros, quizás los más
ricos de la época, antiguos enemigos de los Medici. Su palacio en...
Admiring a work of art
and understanding a work of art are two very different things. Of course,
understanding art is not easy, but at least as far as the works of the past are
concerned, it helps that the artists often used a few recurring themes. Knowing
at least...
Right in the center of the Loggia del Porcellino, in the floor, there is a marble disk depicting a cart wheel.
It indicates the point where the "carroccio" (cart) was placed with
the insignia and flags of the Florentine Republic, where the army gathered in
case of war. But the...
A media hora en coche desde
Florencia, sobre el pueblo de Santa Brígida, encontrará el "anillo de Le Burraie",
un sendero natural equipado de 16 kilómetros a través de bosques, prados, rocas
y hermosas vistas. A lo largo del camino hay muchas “burraie” en excelentes
condiciones. Pero, ¿qué son las...
Compuesto principalmente por un bosque de hermosos chopos blancos, se extiende por varios kilómetros en la margen izquierda del Arno, en la periferia oriental de la ciudad. Muy popular, ofrece hermosas vistas del río, en ese punto continuamente atravesado por los botes de remeros del Club Municipal de Remeros, que...
Nos ha
llegado una carta original de Leonardo da Vinci, intentamos dar aquí una
traducción. Habla del vino, el vino que él mismo produjo en Fiesole:"De
Milán a Zanobi Boni, mi administrador. 9 de diciembre de 1515. Las últimas
cuatro garrafas no fueron como esperaba y me decepcionó. Las vides...
En el parque público más grande de Florencia, Le Cascine, te paras inesperadamente frente a un monumento dedicado a un príncipe indio. El joven príncipe indio Rajaram Chuttraputti de Kolhapur, al regresar de Inglaterra, donde había visitado a la reina Victoria, murió repentinamente en Florencia el 30 de noviembre de 1870,...
Until recently, the park of Villa Fabbricotti was dominated by a wonderful example of a Lebanon Cedar, right at the top of the hill. The trunk 8 meters wide, almost 25 meters high and 200 years old. For its beauty and monumentality it was chosen by the District Council of...
Otro oasis verde a pocos pasos del centro histórico, de fácil acceso a pie. Construido para experimentos científicos botánicos en 1859 por la Academia Georgofili, una asociación fundada en el 1700 para el estudio de técnicas agrícolas, fue y sigue siendo el sitio de exhibiciones y eventos de floricultura y...
In Naples there is the famous
Pulcinella, in Venice there is Colombina and in Bergamo there are Arlecchino
and Brighella; but even Florence has its traditional
carnival mask! It is called Stenterello, and owes its name to its puny and haggard appearance,
that of a man who seems to have,...
Florence also has its own Romeo and Juliet, but they are called Ippolito and Dianora (or Lionora).
The story is told in a novella
of the fifteenth century, Istorietta
amorosa fra Leonora de ’Bardi e Ippolito Buondelmonti, that most attribute
to the pen of Leon Battista Alberti.
It is about...
On the wall of Palazzo Vecchio, behind the statue of Hercules and Cacus
by Baccio Bandinelli, you will notice, if you look closely, the face of a man
engraved in stone.
According to the legend, Michelangelo Buonarroti himself is the author
of this artwork.
Michelangelo was an excellent artist, but...
A golden shield with five red balls, and
a blue one decorated with three golden lilies. You must have seen it everywhere
in Florence, since it is the Medici coat of arms.
The Medici blazon underwent inexplicable changes during
most of the fifteenth century, in particular in regards to the...
The
meter is an object that we all have at home, to which we do not give much
importance; often forgotten at the bottom of a drawer under the batteries and
the rolls of adhesive tape. We certainly cannot consider it a luxury item.
But
what if we told you...
The Fortezza
da Basso, or fortress of San Giovanni Battista, today the main Florentine
exhibition venue, has a long history, which began after the experience of the
siege of 1529.
At the time, Duke Alessandro de’ Medici
commissioned to the artists and architects Pier Francesco da Viterbo and
Antonio da...
Florence is well-stocked with oddities, just look
around while walking down the street to catch some of them. One of these, which
strikes the eye of the most attentive ones, is the balcony located in Borgo
Ognissanti, at number 12.
It certainly stands out: all the architectural elements that compose...
Tienes un dia libre? Haz un recorrido
a --- EL MOLINO DE VENTO DE MONTERIFRASSINE. La Toscana no es un territorio
ventoso, si no en la costa y en algunas zonas montañosas. Por eso, a lo largo
de los siglos los molinos para moler trigo han sido empujados por el...
An inhuman method
that most of the time stole false confessions from the dying convicts.
Ironically, confessions or admissions of guilt under torture were not accepted.
In fact, when the persons subjected to torture declared that they wanted to
speak, the torture was suspended and they were left...
At the time of Dante, Piazza del Duomo was very different from how we know it today.
There was the Baptistery but there was no Basilica of Santa Maria del
Fiore, which was built starting in 1296 on the foundations of the
ancient church of Santa Reparata. Furthermore, on the...
The Fontana del Nettuno was finally inaugurated after a two-year restoration, generously funded by the Ferragamo fashion house.
In 1559 Cosimo I de Medici announced a competition to design the first public fountain in Florence, which thanks to the construction of a new aqueduct would bring water to the city...
Once upon a time, female blackbirds were white as snow, but during one particularly harsh winter their appearance changed forever.
January, was a cruel month, cold and unforgiving, especially towards the little animals that struggled to survive to see another spring. Food was scarce, and snowstorms were frequent and the...
Palazzo Vecchio, with its high tower is one of the symbols of Florence, and the tower, which stands 95 meters high above the roofs of the city, is what marks the location of the ancient Palazzo della Signoria even from afar.
The tower of Arnolfo was built at the beginning...
Those who watched the tv show Medici, were left wondering about the
real story of Simonetta Cattaneo Vespucci, the noblewoman considered to
have been the muse of Sandro Botticelli. In the episodes of the tv
series we see how Simonetta and Giuliano de Medici fall in love while
posing as...
We can all agree that Italian bread is what dreams are made of; for us a good meal is not the same without it.
But did you know that Tuscan bread is very different from the other Italian breads? Alas, for once, we’re missing something the rest of Italy isn’t:...
Palazzo Pitti is certainly the largest palace in Florence, now home to priceless treasures, once home to the lords of the city, the Medici. We all know it as the residence of the Medici family, in fact, but its name reveals its true origins.
Luca Pitti, the archenemy of Cosimo...
The Santa Maria Novella Church is one of the most beautiful churches
in Florence as well as one of the most important examples of Gothic
architecture in Tuscany, and yet, it is too often neglected by tourists,
drawn to more famous places of interest.
Do not make this mistake. You...
La cúpula de Brunelleschi, con su cubierta de tejas rojas y la nervadura blanca de mármol como contraste, es una de las obras arquitectónicas más características de Florencia. Admirada y conocida por su aspecto exterior, es en realidad una obra maestra de la arquitectura que resulta igualmente maravillosa vista desde...
Finding yourself in front of Florence’s breathtaking masterpieces such as the David of Michelangelo or Botticelli’s Primavera or even stepping inside the stunning Chapel of the Princes in San Lorenzo, can cause some serious dizziness. But what if what you felt was more than simple dizziness and excitement? What if...
Una iglesia poco conocida en Florencia es la Iglesia de San Jacopo Sopr’Arno, un edificio de orígenes antiguos construido en estilo románico. Data del siglo X y XI, y le dio nombre a la aldea que fue construida a su alrededor, Borgo San Jacopo, en el Oltrarno florentino.
Giovanni Villani,...
Trades between Florence and the Flanders began in the 15th century. Many Florentine families commissioned works to Flemish that once arrived here in Florence, greatly influenced local artists.
In addition to the works, many artists from Flanders also arrved, many of whom were involved in the Medicean Tapestry Manufactory founded...
What do we know about the story of the creation of Michelangelo’s David, one of the world’s greatest masterpieces?
As one could expect it all started with a piece of stone. A huge 5-meter-high block of marble stone that other artists had already attempted to sculpt before, giving up almost...
¡Grandes noticias en el mundo del arte! El “Salvator Mundi”, la última pintura de Leonardo da Vinci que todavía está en manos de un coleccionista privado, se subastará el 15 de noviembre.
En el momento de su descubrimiento en 2010 la pintura fue definida como el mayor descubrimiento del S....
Again this year, the Rificolona festival will brighten the day of September 7th for many children, who will have fun building a colorful lantern and parading it through the city streets, while the more mischievous ones will arm themselves with blowguns to try and hit the delicate paper creations.
This...
THE LEGENDOnce upon a time in Florence, lived a
Young man called Michele who dedicated his life to his work and to
charity works he did around the neighborhood, he had such a good heart
that people had started to call him “San Michele”.
He owned a stable and horses...
Todos conocel en Mercato Nuovo de Florencia, y la famosa loggia del Porcellino, construida en el 1547 en un proyecto de Giovanni Battista Tasso.
Aquí, a pocos pasos del Ponte Vecchio, originalmente tenía lugar comercio de seda y objetos preciosos, pero con los años esto ha cambiado. Desde el S.XIX...
