Piazza della Signoria is an L-shaped square in front of the Palazzo Vecchio after which it was named. It is the focal point of the origin and of the history of the Florentine Republic and still maintains its reputation as the political hub of the city. Right from Medieval times, Piazza della Signoria has always been the civic centre of Florentine life. Although some original buildings (the Loggia dei Pisani and the Church of St. Cecilia) and the ancient brick paving, which gave it greater unity of style, have now disappeared, it remains in all its aspects a square of incomparable beauty and elegance. Dominated by the fourteenth century Palazzo della Signoria with its high crenellated tower, it is surrounded by other important buildings: the Loggia della Signoria and the Palazzo degli Uffizi on the south side, the sixteenth century Palazzo degli Uguccioni on the north side and the Palazzo del Tribunale di Mercanzia (about 1359) on the east side.This splendid open-air museum evokes centuries of greatness and power. It was already a central square in the original Roman town Florentia, surrounded by a theatre, Roman baths and a workshop for dyeing textiles. Later there was a church San Romolo, a loggia and an enormous 5th c. basilica. This was shown by the archaeological treasures found beneath the square when it was repaved in the 1980's. Even remains of a Neolithic site were found. The square started taking shape from 1268 on, when houses of Ghibellines were pulled down by the victorious Guelphs. In 1385 it was paved for the first time. In 1497 Girolamo Savonarola and his followers carried out on this square the famous Bonfire of the Vanities, burning, in a large pile, books, gaming tables, fine dresses, and works of poets. In front of the fountain of Neptune, a round marble plaque marks the exact spot where Girolamo Savonarola was hanged and burned on May 23, 1498.
The Palazzo delle Assicurazioni Generali on the west side of the square, an imitation of Renaissance style, was built by Land in 1871. The square, where public tournaments and feasts took place between 1400 and 1500, was transformed almost into an open-air museum in the sixteenth century by the addition of several statues: from left to right one can admire the bronze equestrian statue of Great Duke Cosimo
I, a late work of Giambologna (1594); the large and monumental Ammannati Fountain (1575), ironically called "Biancone" because of the remarkable difference between the ugly and heavy central statue of Neptune and the slender figures of the satyrs and nymphs leaning on the waved border of the fountains. In front of the fountain, almost at the centre of the square, a granite disc commemorates the place where Savonarola and his faithful followers, Fra' Domenico and Fra' Silvestro, were hanged and burned. On the steps of Palazzo della Signoria from left to right: a copy of the Marzocco, a lion with the Florentine lily (the original preserved in the Bargello) and a copy of the group of Judith and Holofernes (original is in the Piazza della Signoria Museum), outstanding works by Donatello (about 1460), a copy of the famous David by Michelangelo, the original of which is in the Academy Gallery, and the marble group of Hercules and Cacus by Baccio Bandinelli (1536). In the same square one can also visit the collection of Alberto della Ragione, donated to the city of Florence in 1970. This important collection of Italian contemporary art includes works of well-known painters and sculptors of our time, as, for example, Carrà, De Chirico, De Pisis, Guttuso, Morandi, Fontana and Manzù.The Palazzo Vecchio ("Old Palace") is the town hall of Florence, central Italy. This massive, Romanesque, crenellated fortress-palace is among the most impressive town halls of Tuscany. Overlooking the Piazza della Signoria it is one of the most significant public places in Italy. Originally called the Palazzo della Signoria, after the Signoria of Florence, the ruling body of the Republic of Florence, it was also given several other names: Palazzo del Popolo, Palazzo dei Priori, and Palazzo Ducale, in accordance with the varying use of the palace during its long history. The building acquired its current name when the Medici duke's residence was moved across the Arno to the Palazzo Pitti. Built at the turn between the 13th and 14th centuries as the seat of the Priors, the oldest part of Palazzo Vecchio was originally designed by Arnolfo di Cambio (1245-1302). The later additions of the 15th and above all of the 16th centuries changed the scale of the rear part of the palace, without however modifying the massive appearance of the huge blocks, projecting gallery and asymmetrical tower.
Various statues are lined up in front of the Palazzo Vecchio, including a copy of Michelangelo's David, that replaced the original in 1873, and the group of Hercules and Cacus by Bandinelli. On the facade, above the door, there is a medallion with the monogram of Christ betweer two lions in a blue field, surmounted by a gable. The inscription" Rex regum et Dominus dominantium" was placed there in 1551 by order of Cosimo I, to replace the previous inscription, set there thirty years before.
Initially, the seat of the Signoria was provisionally used by the Grand Ducal family until 1540 when Cosimo I de Medici moved the residence to the newly built Palazzo Pitti and it was at that time that the palace was referred to as "old". The transformations applied by Vasari date back to this period. He sumptuously redecorated the newly reconstructed interiors taking into account the new role of the palace, which was to be used both as seat of the gouve
rnement and as official residence of the ruling family. The most important rooms of the palace are illustrated in sequence: the first entrance courtyard with white and gilded stucco work, redecorated with frescoes in the 16th century, owes its elegant structure to the second half of the 15th century. The courtyard opens on to the ancient Armoury now frequently used by the Town Council to organise exhibitions.
On the first floor we find the grandiose Salone dei Cinquecento, a work by Cronaca (1495), which was used for the assemblies of the General Council of the People, after the State reforms brought about by Girolamo Savonarola. The walls of the hall, originally decorated by Michelangelo and Leonardo, owe their present-day monumental appearance to Vasari and his pupils and date back to the second half of the 16th century. The panelled ceiling, the frescoes on the walls, the Udienza (the raised section of the room with statues by Bandinelli and Caccini), the sculptures of De Rossi featuring the Deeds of Hercules contribute to the complex and rich symbolism and offer a precise historical view of the glorious past of the Medici family. The hall also exhibits the Genius of Victory by Michelangelo. In contrast with the grandness of this hall, but equally sumptuous is the little Studiolo of Francis I, a jewel of Mannerism art and sensitivity, where the prince retired to meditate and gaze his treasures. The visit can continue through the rooms on the first floor, each dedicated to a personality of the Medici family (Cosimo the Elder, Lorenzo, Leo X), all appropriately frescoed.
On the second floor we find the "Quarter of the Elements" and the apartments of Eleonora da Toledo, the wife of Cosimo I. Despite the rich overall decoration, it is worth admiring the small chapel of the princess that was magnificently decorated by Bronzino (1503-1572). The visit can continue through the official rooms, like the Audience Chamber and the Lily Chamber with sumptuous ceilings, decorations and doors dating back to the 15th century. The final section of the monumental apartments preserves the Loeser Collection, donated to the Town of Florence by the American art critic Charles Loeser, who died in 1928. The collection includes paintings and sculptures of the Tuscan school ranging from the 14th to the 16th centuries (works by Tino da Camaino, Berruguete, Rustici, Bronzino and Cellini).
Various statues are lined up in front of the Palazzo Vecchio, including a copy of Michelangelo's David, that replaced the original in 1873, and the group of Hercules and Cacus by Bandinelli. On the facade, above the door, there is a medallion with the monogram of Christ betweer two lions in a blue field, surmounted by a gable. The inscription" Rex regum et Dominus dominantium" was placed there in 1551 by order of Cosimo I, to replace the previous inscription, set there thirty years before.
Initially, the seat of the Signoria was provisionally used by the Grand Ducal family until 1540 when Cosimo I de Medici moved the residence to the newly built Palazzo Pitti and it was at that time that the palace was referred to as "old". The transformations applied by Vasari date back to this period. He sumptuously redecorated the newly reconstructed interiors taking into account the new role of the palace, which was to be used both as seat of the gouve
rnement and as official residence of the ruling family. The most important rooms of the palace are illustrated in sequence: the first entrance courtyard with white and gilded stucco work, redecorated with frescoes in the 16th century, owes its elegant structure to the second half of the 15th century. The courtyard opens on to the ancient Armoury now frequently used by the Town Council to organise exhibitions.On the first floor we find the grandiose Salone dei Cinquecento, a work by Cronaca (1495), which was used for the assemblies of the General Council of the People, after the State reforms brought about by Girolamo Savonarola. The walls of the hall, originally decorated by Michelangelo and Leonardo, owe their present-day monumental appearance to Vasari and his pupils and date back to the second half of the 16th century. The panelled ceiling, the frescoes on the walls, the Udienza (the raised section of the room with statues by Bandinelli and Caccini), the sculptures of De Rossi featuring the Deeds of Hercules contribute to the complex and rich symbolism and offer a precise historical view of the glorious past of the Medici family. The hall also exhibits the Genius of Victory by Michelangelo. In contrast with the grandness of this hall, but equally sumptuous is the little Studiolo of Francis I, a jewel of Mannerism art and sensitivity, where the prince retired to meditate and gaze his treasures. The visit can continue through the rooms on the first floor, each dedicated to a personality of the Medici family (Cosimo the Elder, Lorenzo, Leo X), all appropriately frescoed.
On the second floor we find the "Quarter of the Elements" and the apartments of Eleonora da Toledo, the wife of Cosimo I. Despite the rich overall decoration, it is worth admiring the small chapel of the princess that was magnificently decorated by Bronzino (1503-1572). The visit can continue through the official rooms, like the Audience Chamber and the Lily Chamber with sumptuous ceilings, decorations and doors dating back to the 15th century. The final section of the monumental apartments preserves the Loeser Collection, donated to the Town of Florence by the American art critic Charles Loeser, who died in 1928. The collection includes paintings and sculptures of the Tuscan school ranging from the 14th to the 16th centuries (works by Tino da Camaino, Berruguete, Rustici, Bronzino and Cellini).
| Next > |
|---|
