New Opera Duomo Museum - a spectacular museum!

It was already one of my favourite museums - then they decided to close for another restauration, they just reopened on Oct 29th 2015 and I have to admit that I have almost cried... it is so intense, moving, beautiful and worth-seeing museum! The best.

Opera of Duomo opens in 1891 to host the Pieta of Michelangelo, without a home... then it became the deposit of many many sculptures, paintings, sacred objects - that were before kept inside the Cathedral or inside the Baptistry, and then got replaced by more modern pieces.

Ancient Façade Room

Arnolfo di Cambio, the main architect of the Cathedral, started the works on September 8th 1296 - and he worked also to the main façade. Unfortunately he died before the Cathedral and the façade were finished (poor destiny for medieval architects... they never survived to their projects!)
In 1587 the façade was totally demolished, and finally accomplished only in 1881!
Did you know that our façade was so young?

So, they have reconstruct a 1:1 scale façade with the original statues... it represents the ancient space between Cathedral doors and Baptistry - so if you turn around you will admire also the beautiful gilded bronze doors by Ghiberti!
It is a magnificent setting, a moving room, you will find yourself in tears. Outstanding

Virgin Mary with brilliant eyes

The Paradise Gate - Lorenzo Ghiberti

Ancient Façade Room



Beheading of St. John the Baptist - Rustici

Detail of Paradise Gate - Mosé

Donatello's Magdalene and Michelangelo's Pietà

On the ground floor you will admire 2 incredibly intense statues: the wood Magdalene by Donatello, founded lost in the desert after years of wandering, she was devasted, skinny, her clothes were destroyed... she is surprised to see you, and she opens a bit her mouth. A superb and moving representation of Magdalene

And what about the Pietà by Michelangelo?

Christmas 2012 and New Years Eve in Florence 2013

Christmas is just few days away, and also New Year's Eve... I know from the increase of visitors that a lot of you are luckily spending time in Florence for these festivities, so here some tips to enjoy your time over here, swinging by closed restaurants, closed museums, lots of people, lots of drinks.. :)

*** Museums exceptionally open ***

Christmas and January 1st will be basically all closed, shops museums and most restaurants... so stay in your hotel room as much as you can, or if you really want to do something here what there is open:

- Archeological Museum - Dec 25th from 08,30 am to 2,00 pm and Jan 1st from 1,30 pm to 7,00 pm

Medici Villas La Pietraia and Poggio a Caiano - Jan 1st from 09,30 am to 3,30 pm

"Never Seen" temporary exhibition at Reali Poste room - Jan 1st from 1,30 pm to 7,30 pm

"30ies - Art during Fascism" temporary exhibition at Strozzi Palace - open Dec 25th and Jan 1st

Vecchio Palace Museum - Jan 1st from 2pm to 7 pm

*** Restaurants for Christmas Lunch 2012***

Just few places are open in this occasion, cause Christmas is definitely the most important religious event in Italy, and everybody is home eating like it's their last supper in the life, so if you are around and you don't want to come over my house, you could go to:

- Touch Florence - Via Fiesolana 18/r - 055 2466150 - a new and super yummy reality in Florence

- Caffè Pitti - Piazza Pitti 9 - 055 2399863 - causy and charming caffè

- Paoli - via dei Tavolini 12/r - 055 216215 -  a guarantee in the tuscan cuisine

*** Restaurants open for New Year's Eve***

They are divided into 3 categories: those who are closed; those who are open and have a huge, fixed, long and pricy menu; those who have an almost regular à la carte Menu. Here's my favourites:

- Touch Florence - Via Fiesolana 18/r - 055 2466150 - à la carte

- BSJ - Borgo San Jacopo 12/r - 055 281661 - big Menu

- Buca Lapi - Via del Trebbio 1/r - 055 213768 - à la carte

- Alle Murate - via del Proconsolo - 055 240618 - big Menu

- Cinghiale Bianco - Borgo San Jacopo 43/r - 055 215706 - à la carte

Have fun!

Cappellacci @ Touch

Bistecca @ Buca Lapi

Gazpacho and fried prawns @ BSJ

Santa Maria Novella Church

Today we are talking about a beautiful florentine Church, called by Michelangelo "my bride", quarterheads of Dominican Friars, who settled in this area just outside the city wall in 1220, when they came into Florence as all of the other friars orders, to help poor people who were living just outside the city and also to survey the ortodoxyof catholicism.

The huge medieval church is impressive - they used to have vibrant speaches that got together plenty of people, that had to stand also outside the church, therefore friars were choosing such big Piazzas.
This square was famous also because here a lot of public games were held, for example the Calcio in Costume (soccer similar to american rugby), or Palio dè Cocchi, a race of 4 two-horses chariots roman style, much beloved by Granduc Cosimo I.

The façade is a very important example of Renaissance - the main artist, Leon Battista Alberti, could mix the already existant medieval façade of the first level with armony and semplicity, working superbly on marble inlaids, using the roman language of columns, geometric shapes such as circles, squares, triangle etc.

Inside, you will be absorbed by a solemn calme and peace - you would admire masterpieces such as Giotto wood crucifix, or Masaccio Trinity, and of course the spectacular chapels frescoed by Ghirlandaio and Filippino Lippi, just to mention some...

Right behind, there is a place that I love in Florence, the Spanish Chapel and the Green Cloister - a pearl, hard to find in Florence, no crowds of people, colourfull and interesting frescoes, dedicated to the Dominican friars history.

Don't forget to visit in Via della Scala 16 the Officina Profumeria Farmacia Santa Maria Novella, famous all over the world for its products, creams, parfums and so on...

The beautiful façade

Spanish Chapel fresco




Green Cloister fresco by Paolo Uccello

Brancacci Chapel

On the right side of the transept of Santa Maria del Carmine church you can find a jewel of first Renaissance painting: Brancacci Chapel, painted by a young Masaccio,his older master/collegue Masolino da Panicale, and some 50 years later additions by Filippino Lippi.

Brancaccis were an important florentine family, connected to the Medici family - Felice Brancacci commissionated the cycle based on Saint Peter, because of his ancestor named Pietro and mostly because at those times depicting St. Peter, being the first Pope of Catholic Church, meant basically being connected, very well connected, to the Papacy.

Two main painters worked on this chapel: Masolino da Panicale, and a 23 years old Masaccio, much younger than Masolino, and recently considered as collegue instead of pupil, because of his outstanding and innovate artistic talent, so different from Masolino.

Brancacci Chapel is the perfect place to understand and appreciate the changing from late Gothic Style to the early Renaissance, that introduce a new body study, basing on classic measures, and a new emotion of the faces, plus a considering skill to represent tridimension and perspective.

Check how differently Adam and Eve are represented. Amazing.

Left side: Masolino right side Masaccio (photo source voxnova)

This chapel miraculously survived to a tragic fire that in 1771 destroyed all the Church. Frescos were all blacken by smoke and soot - it was not possible to see how the real colours were... until behind an altar they discovered an undamaged piece of fresco, and that helped to restore and give new life and brilliance to this incredible masterpiece.

If you have the bad idea to visit by yourself instead that with me :) just kidding of course, then I suggest you to see the dvd that is shown before entering in the Chapel, interesting and impressive, seeing closer the frescos with music in the background.

Brancacci Chapel

Masaccio's Adam and Eve

Two stylish Florentine - by Masolino

My favourite: this body seems so real

Firenze com'era Museum - Florence "as it looked"

It isn't one of the most popular museum in town, but it is the best one to visit for those who are lucky to know the city very well and want to go deepier in our amazing history to find out the roman foundation, the etruscan past, to understand better how the city has grown in the century.
It's very usefull for "beginners" also, and definitely enchanting to admire the "Pianta della Catena", Chain Map, a beautiful wood panel painted in the 1470 with the frame carved as a chain - it's a photo of the city in the Renaissance time.
The lunettes of Justus Ustens, a flamish painter, describe how the opulent Medici Villas were before all the changing they have been through.It is located in the wonderful Loggia of the Oblate nuns ex-convent, in Via dell'Oriuolo 24.

Update: the museum Firenze Com'era is temporary closed, waiting to be restaured and probably moved to a different location

Plastic model of Firenze Romana

One of the lunettes by Justus Utens

I love that: the original keys of the door of the city wall!

The Chain Map - Renaissance Fiorenza

Vasari Corridor

An incredible and unique place in Florence: the Vasari Corridor.

Built in only 5 months by Giorgio Vasari, the favourite architect of Grand Duke Cosimo I dé Medici, who commissionated it in honour of his first son Francesco's wedding with Johanna from Austria.

I'ts an aeral walkway that connects the Old Palace (the power head office) with the Pitti Palace (the new residence of the Medici family), almost 1 km long, passing above the Old Bridge, getting through houses, tower houses, a church (Santa Felicita church, where the Medici had a private balcony just stepping outside the Corridor, giving them the chance to assist to the Mass without having to mix with the crowds).

At the south end of the Old Bridge, the Corridor has a deep deviation, having to skip the Mannelli Tower House, a very powerfull family who didn't want to have the corridor passing through their house, and Cosimo had to agree with them...

Symbol of power, cause connecting house and "office", and also because they were walking above the people, Medici used the Corridor not only to show off, but also to walk around the town safely and well protected.

Plus, opening the little oval windows they could hear city rumors, knowing in advance bad or good news.

Second-born of Cosimo, Ferdinand, decided to move away the smelly butchers and fishvendors by the Old Bridge, replacing them with precious gold and silver shops.

Now, Vasari Corridor hosts the most important selfportraits in the world - more than 2,000 paintings, from Titian to Chagall, from Giorgio Vasari himself to Antonio Canova, from Bernini to Jacques-Louise David, passing through centuries of art.

Mostly closed to the public, I am able to organize for you an unforgettable and private visit to this splendid sight of Florence.

The corridor

Spectacular views from the little "oculo" windows

Santa Felicita inside and Medici private stage

Cute balcony on the Ponte Vecchio