From the Uffizi, walk to the river. It’s the one with the shops on it. Free.
PALAZZO VECCHIO
In P. della Signoria
MUSEUM
055 27 68 465
The real draw here is that it’s the only museum you can visit post-aperitivo. In addition, the place has got some pretty impressive architecture and views. The vast and ornate Room of the 500’s gilded ceiling is divided into panels that frame truly massive paintings. On the second floor, the Salon of Leo X, a terrace with an incredible view of the city and the surrounding hills, provides a great photo op. There’s a lot of repetition in this palazzo, though, and it can all begin to look the same. That’s until you reach the Sala dei Gigli, which boasts a pretty rocking view of the Duomo as well as a fantastic map room that’s worth all the chintz before it.
The huge one in P. della Signoria. €6, ages 18-25 and over 65 €4.50. Tours free if requested at time of ticket purchase. Open M-W 9am-midnight, Th 9am-2pm, F-Su 9am-midnight. Activities and tours with costumed reenactors, skits, etc. available; call for times.
The Outer Ring
Florence has numerous sights outside of the Uffizi and that big pink gelato cone. The city is so full of museums and churches that we just don’t have space to list all of them. These are what we think are the best, if you wonder around the city enough you’re bound to find a bunch more.
GALLERIA DELL’ACCADEMIA
V. Ricasoli 60
MUSEUM
055 23 88 612 www.firenzemusei.it/accademia
Sometimes tourist attractions gain their reputation for a reason. The David is pretty legit. Do you see those veins on his hand? The guy’s a beast.
Four other statues by Michelangelo share David’s hall. They’re unfinished, with figures that appear to be trapped in the remaining block of marble, like Han Solo encased in carbonite. You may understand on an intellectual level that the master’s statues are carved from a single piece of marble, but seeing these unfinished works drives it home. One big damn rock. One man. A bunch of chisels. It’s kind of miraculous, really.
Beyond its main event, the Accademia is a small museum, albeit a good one. The musical instruments gallery, to the right when you enter, is surprisingly informational. Past the David gallery on the left is a 19th-century workroom overflowing with sculpted heads and busts. Notice the little black dots freckling the pieces? They harken back to the Accademia’s days as an actual academy. These are plaster casts were created for teaching, and the black dots are nails that students used as reference points as they made copies for practice. Gorgeous crucifixes and Russian Orthodox stuff make a quick spin through the upstairs worthwhile. At your most contemplative pace, the Accademia won’t take more than an hour. Bear that in mind when weighing the choice between paying extra for a reservation or waiting in a line that lasts far longer than you’ll spend in the actual museum.
Line for entrance is on Ricasoli, off of San Marco proper. Make reservations at the Museo Archeologico, the Museo di San Marco, or the Museo del’Oficio. The non-reservation line is shortest at the beginning of the day. Try to avoid the midday cruise ship excursion groups. €6.50, EU citizens ages 18-25 €3.25, EU citizens under 18 and over 65, and art students free. €4 reservation fee applies to all. Open Tu-Su 8:15am-6:50pm. Last entrance 30min. before close..
SYNAGOGUE OF FLORENCE
V. Luigi Carlo Farini 4
SYNAGOGUE, MUSEUM
055 21 07 63 www.firenzehebraica.net
It may not be Renaissance vintage, but this is one Florentine house of worship that is well worth a visit. Florence is mum when it comes to the history of its working class, minority, or otherwise non-Medici population, and the synagogue is one of the only sights where average citizens get the spotlight. The story of the Jewish community and Italy’s role in WWII is every bit as vital to your understanding of the city of Florence as a stack of Botticellis. Prior to WWII, there were 40,000 Jews in Italy, 2400 living in Florence. The synagogue contains a memorial to the Florentines killed in the camps; although the list is relatively short, the number of shared surnames indicates that a handful of large families were wiped out completely. That this building is still standing is miraculous—when the Nazis evacuated the temple was rigged to explode, but amazingly all but one of the bombs failed to detonate, saving it from total destruction—and a visit to it offers an incredibly moving and different experience from anywhere else in Florence.
From the Basilica di Santa Croce, head north on V. dei Pepi for 7 blocks. Take a right onto Pilastri and an immediate left onto V. Luigi Carlo Farini. Yarmulkes required and provided. Check bags and cameras at lockers before entering. €5, students €3. Open Apr-Sept M-Th 10am-6pm, F 10am-2pm; Oct-Mar M-Th 10am-3pm, F 10am-2pm. Closed Jewish holidays. The 1st fl. of the museum is open during the 2nd half of every hr.
MUSEO DI FERRAGAMO
P. Santa Trinita 5r
MUSEUM
055 33 60 456 www.museoferragamo.it
That’s right, the shoe guy. This small but excellently designed museum celebrates the work of the great cobbler to the stars, whose eloquent and anecdotal memoirs are liberally quoted in the museum’s display text. Exhibits rotate every two years; a new installation is arriving in late 2010, focusing on footwear in the second half of the 20th century. We know you may have a skeptical look on your face right now, but you don’t have to be Carrie Bradshaw to appreciate a fashion and culture exhibit as thoughtfully assembled as this one. The gift shop is surprisingly tiny, but check out the real Ferragamo store upstairs to ogle shoes you can’t possibly afford.
Enter at P. Santa Trinita, the side of the building facing away from the river. Ticket proceeds fund scholarships for young shoe designers. €5, under 10 and over 65 free. Open M 10am-6pm, W-Su 10am-6pm.
PALAZZO STROZZI
P. degli Strozzi
MUSEUM, PALAZZO
055 27 76 461 www.palazzostrozzi.org
While this may seem like yet another old palace, impressive like all the others, it isn’t the seen-one-seen-’em-all Renaissance decor that makes Palazzo Strozzi worth visiting. The Center for Contemporary Culture Strozzina, which produces shows of recent and contemporary art in the palace’s exhibit halls, is the main draw here. Recent shows have included an exhibit of De Chirico, Ernst, and Magritte as well as a series of interactive installations tracing the effect of media on modern living. The programming changes regularly, so check the website or stop by if you want to shake a little 21st century into Florence’s 15th-century aesthetic.
West of P. della Repubblica. Prices and hours vary; check website for details.
BASILICA DI SANTA MARIA NOVELLA
P. di Santa Maria Novella
CHURCH
055 21 59 18 www.chiesasantamarianovella.it
If you’re only going to bother with one of the non-Duomo churches, consider making it this one. The cavernous church features some glorious stained glass which, due to the church’s north-south orientation, reflects beautifully on to the floors in the morning and late afternoon. The Filippino-Lippi-designed chapel to the right of the altar is almost cartoonish in the drama and action of its panels. Cappella Strozzi on the left has a sadly faded fresco of Purgatory, inspired by Dante. Try to make out the goblins, centaurs, and less familiar mythological figures like the man-dove. The basilica also features an impossibly handsome gift shop in a room dominated by a gold-trimmed reliquary cabinet and a red and blue ceiling so bright it must have been restored yesterday.
Just south of the train station; can’t miss it. Audio tour stations in the middle of the sanctuary for €1; some travelers wait around for others to pay up the euro and get bored, then finish their turn. €3.50, over 65, the disabled, and priests free. Open M-Th 9-5:30pm, F 11am-5:30pm, Sa 9am-5pm, Su 1-5pm.
PALAZZO MEDICI RICARDI
V. Camillo Cavour 1
MUSEUM
055 27 60 340 www.palazzo-medici.it
After innumerable treks through the detritus of the Medici�
��s public life, you may be wondering what they were like at home. Answer: more of the same. In their tiny chapel, the frescoes are so cluttered with faces of generations of Medici attending the Adoration of the Magi that you’ll find just as much to look at as you would in a grander commission. The palazzo still plays a key role in provincial government today. The Quattro Stagioni hall hosts the provincial council, and the gold-on-white stucco panels of the Sala Luca Giordana, flanked by painted mirrors and frolicking cherubim, are incongrously complemented by a projection screen, a conference table, and rows of plexiglass chairs. If nothing else, be happy for the members of the provincial council who get to gaze at fleshy angels when they zone out during dull meetings.
From San Lorenzo you can see the back of the huge brown palace. Enter from the reverse side, on V. Cavour. €7, groups of 15 or more and ages 6-12 €4. Open M-Tu 9am-7pm, Th-Su 9am-7pm.
a man with a plan
After 100 years of construction, the Duomo still had a gaping hole. The architects found themselves stumped—during construction, they had not realized that the dome the design called for would have to be larger than anything previously built or even considered possible. After several decades of leaving the church open to the elements, the commission for the construction was awarded to an unlikely candidate: Filippo Brunelleschi, who had been trained as a goldsmith, not an architect. How did Brunelleschi end up gaining the commission for the largest dome of his age? Legend states that he proposed a competition: whichever architect could make an egg stand up on a slab of marble would take over the dome’s construction. When everyone else attempted and failed, Brunelleschi cracked the egg at the bottom and placed the newly flat edge on the marble. Fortunately, he was as talented at architecture as he was at rule-bending, and his ingenuity led to the spectacular dome that is still the most stunning sight on Florence’s skyline.
MEDICI CHAPELS
P. Madonna degli Aldobrandini 6
MUSEUM
055 23 88 602 www.firenzemusei.it
Ah, the Medici. If you thought they were opulent alive, wait until you see them dead! The Cappella Principe, an octagonal chapel that’s the final home of a handful of Medici, is the grander of the two on display in this museum, despite being unfinished. Some of the Medici were smart enough to commission their own statues, and they’re doing swell. Others went with the popular trend of having sons commission honorary statues after their fathers’ death. This, of course, led to lots of empty statue slots. There are other late additions as well—the frescoes may look the part, but they were painted in the 1870s. As some tour guide quipped while we were eavesdropping, while the French were inventing Impressionism, the Florentines were still in the Renaissance.
The roundish building to the right of San Lorenzo. Likely visit length: 30min. tops. €6, EU citizens 18-25 €3, EU citizens under 18 and over 65 free. Open fairly daily 8:15am-4:50pm. Closed 1st, 3rd, 5th M and 2nd and 4th Su each month.
MUSEO DI SAN MARCO
P. San Marco 3
MUSEUM
055 23 88 608 www.firenzemusei.it
The first floor of this museum is divided into small cubbies the size of West Village studios. These are the cells of old monks, and each one has a different painting on the wall. Pop inside and imagine spending four decades copying manuscripts by hand in here. Then imagine what it would be like if an angel arrived to announce that you were about to experience an unplanned pregnancy—twice—by looking at Fra Angelico’s two Annunciation frescoes. The most famous, which you’ll probably recognize from postcards, is at the top of the staircase, while a less popular incarnation is on the wall of one of the cells.
The north side of the piazza. Approximate visit time: 30min. €4, EU citizens age 16-25 €2. Open M-F 8:15am-1:50pm, Sa 8:15am-6:50pm, Su 8:15am-7pm.
BASILICA DI SAN LORENZO
P. San Lorenzo
CHURCH
055 26 45 184 www.sanlorenzo.firenze.it
The Basilica di San Lorenzo was consecrated in 393 CE: this is why Europeans scoff at Americans who think of 19th-century churches as old. The austere basilica is grey and white, but the cupola by the altar is a bit more glam. In the old sacristy is a small cupola painted with gold constellations on a midnight blue background that represent the sky over Florence on July 4th, 1442. Cool if you care about that sort of thing, but otherwise, spend your €3.50 on a big gelato and take it to the cloister on the left side of the basilica. The cloister is free and peaceful and has some of those rare Florentine trees. The domes and towers of nearby attractions peek out over the walls of the courtyard, making for a nice panorama.
In P. San Lorenzo, which is just a little north of the Duomo. €3.50. Open M-Sa 10am-5pm, Su 1:30-5pm.
BASILICA DI SANTA CROCE
P. Santa Croce
CHURCH
055 24 66 105
This basilica is an enormous complex worthy of costing more than the other big churches in town, though really it’s the dead celebrities buried here that jack up the price of admission. Fork over the dough and pay your respects to Florence’s greats. Rossini’s tomb is subtly decorated with treble clefs and violin bridges. Galileo gets a globe and an etching of the solar system (his solar system) to mark his grave. Machiavelli is just sort of chilling. Dante’s tomb is probably cool, but it was blocked with scaffolding when we visited. Michelangelo, all things considered, really should have a grander place of burial, but since he didn’t design it, we take what we can get. Even Marconi is here—that’s right, the guy who invented the radio.
Take Borgo de’ Greci east from P. della Signoria. €5, ages 11-17 €3, disabled free. Combined with Casa Michelangelo €8. Audio tour €5. Open M-F 9:30am-3:30pm, Sa-Su 1-5:30pm.
The Oltrarno
PALAZZO PITTI
P. de’ Pitti
MUSEUM, GARDENS
The major sights of West Oltrarno are all helpfully condensed into the enormous Palazzo Pitti. Built by Lucca Pitti and eventually bought by—who else—the Medici, it is a phenomenal complex of museums and gardens. The museums are batched under two ticket combos: Ticket One gets you into Galleria Palatina, Galleria d’Arte Moderna, and Apartamenti Reali. Ticket Two is for the Boboli Gardens, Museo degli Argenti, Galleria del Costume, and Museo della Porcellana. Overall, if you’re choosing one ticket combo over the other, we recommend Ticket Two.
As wonderful as the museums are, it’s the Boboll Gardens that are the most remarkable attraction here. They’re like a cross between Central Park and Versailles, which means they are really wonderful. Imagine you’re a 17th-century Medici strolling through your gardens—but don’t imagine your way into a corset, ladies, because the gardens are raked at a surprising incline. Ticket Two will also get you into Galleria del Costume, essentially a fashion museum that is worth visiting for its interesting curatorial decisions—clothes are arranged thematically rather than chronologically. There’s also the Museo degli Argenti—a treasure museum—and the Museo della Porcellana—which is much less dull than you might expect a porcelain museum to be.
If you ignored out advice and purchased Ticket One, your main attraction will be the Galleria Palatina, an enormous gallery that would be more of a draw in a city that didn’t also include the Uffizi. In a typically Florentine move, the permanent collection is housed in rooms named not for the art, but for the ceilings. We are still in a palazzo, remember, so the organizational logic is still that of a rich royal wanting to clutter his brocaded walls with all the big-ticket masterpieces he could commission. At the back end of the gallery is the Apartamenti Reali, which gets it right by doing away with the pesky art and sticking to the rich people’s bedrooms. Take a quick stroll through the apartments of the great and pick out tapestries, tassels, and toilettes for your own palace. Finally, there’s the Galleria d’Arte Moderna. Only in Florence could people define “modern art” as stuff that predates the French Revolution. The gallery is mostly mired in 19th-century Naturalism, so don’t let the name fool you into thinking that you’ll find a
nything remotely challenging or aesthetically engaging here. Fortunately, the Palazzo Pitti complex as a whole is large enough that one disappointing museum is not enough to derail what is, even in this city, an extraordinary collection of displays.
Cross the river at Ponte Vecchio and walk straight, bearing right with the street, until you reach the extremely obvious palace. Official guidebook €8, available at ticket office. Audio guide €5.50, double €8. Ticket 1 €12, EU citizens age 18-25 €6, EU citizens under 18 and over 65 free. Ticket 2 €10/€5/free. Ticket 1 attractions open Tu-Su 8:15am-6:50pm. Ticket 2 attractions open daily June-Aug 8:15am-7:30pm; Sept 8:15am-6:30pm; Oct 8:15am-5:30pm; Nov-Feb 8:15am-4:30pm; Mar-May 8:15am-6:30pm. Closed 1st and last M of each month.
PIAZZALE MICHELANGELO
Piazzale Michelangelo
PANORAMIC VIEWS
Let's Go Europe 2011: The Student Travel Guide Page 152