Florence - The birthplace of the Italian Renaissance

Florence is the capital of the Tuscany region and said to be the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance. It is marked by the great domed roof of the Duomo. The roof was modelled on that of the Pantheon in Rome, but built of bricks instead of concrete. Brunelleschi designed and built the dome between 1420 and 1436. The dome is actually one dome on top of another, meaning no scaffolding was used in the outer dome's construction. It is an engineering marvel.

The roof of the Duomo

The Gates to Paradise

The Bapistery sits in front of the green, pink and white marbelled exterior of the Duomo. The doors leading into the Bapistery were designed by Pisano and built in 1425. These are on the east side (he earlier won a competition to build the north doors - which are not quite as remarkable). Michelangelo called the east doors the Gates to Paradise, for which they are still called.

David by Michelangelo

A copy of Michelangelo's David - where the original used to stand in the Piazza della Signoria. A groupd of statues sits next to David - including The Rape of the Sabine by Giambologna - which, I think, is every bit as good as David. The originals are stunning and can be found in the Galleria dell'Accademia. The original David was supposed to sit on top of the Duomo and hence the head looks a bit out of proportion, as Michelangelo wanted it to look in proportion from street level. Nevertheless, it is a fantastic carving. Apparently it was done without guidelines etc. from a single, otherwise unwanted, piece of marble.

The Rape of the Sabine by Giambologna

Ponte Vecchio

The Ponte Vecchio spans the Arno river. I didn't think much of it, but apparently the Germans thought it was too good to destroy as they retreated from the allies coming up from the south of Italy. I wouldn't have given it a moment's thought...

Piazza della Signoria

The famous piazza where the Medici's Palace can be found and the Uffizi Gallery. In 1497, it was the location of the Bonfire of the Vanities instigated by the Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola. Savonarola ended up being burnt here himself when it was believed he had gone a tad too far with his persecution of protestants.

The Orsanmichele

A little visited church was a redesigned granary, the Orsanmichele. It is surrounded by great sculptures, mainly from Donatello. It is incredible to believe that you can walk the same steps as Michelangelo as he studied these sculptures in preparation for designing and chiselling away David. The alter in this church is equally fantastic.

Galileo's Telescopes from 1610

With these telescopes Galileo turned astronomy (and religion) on its head. He studied the Moon and Venus to find that they weren't perfect bodies as Aristotle had suggested - created as perfect celestial objects by God himself. Galileo was then put under house arrest in his villa just on the outskirts of Florence by the Catholic Church.

Galileo's Middle Finger

Why this was put in a jar is anyone's guess. I think it's his right hand.