Fascinating Florence

A two hour train journey from Venice took us to Florence or Firenz as it is known locally. On the way, we passed a couple of towns that we’ve read about in different contexts: Padova and Bologna (Bolo-niya).

The hotel was walking distance from the station. However, it was still an effort to drag the luggage. By now, the luggage is a little worn out (as the rest of us) and has a mind of its own. The wheels don’t move smoothly and need a lot of coaxing to travel along with us! Even the children seem an easier proposition!

Hotel Paris is very close to the main attraction at Florence: The Duomo. The huge brown dome towers over the sky very close to us. Most photographs of Florence feature this dome in the skyline. You want to remember the name Brunelleschi (Broon-e-leski) who constructed this spectacular dome in the fifteenth century. 

Hill town Fiseole in the Tuscan hills:

We took a guided tour through Florence later in the day. It began with a short drive to the hills which hug Florence. We stopped at a hill town called Fiseole (fee-sio-ley) (whose patron saint is San Dominco). There are a number of charming villas on the hill slopes and beautiful trees. Two trees are characteristic of this region: Cypress and olive. Cypress trees are tall, wiry and shapely with a distinct dark-green color. We’re told that these trees were brought from Cypress and hence the name.

Olive trees are short in contrast in a much duller green. (Olive green obviously gets its name from here). The panoramic views of the city of Florence with the river Arno flowing and the Duomo in the distance are breathtaking.

The Truscans were the original inhabitants of these hills. The name Tuscany for this entire region comes from the Truscans. To the North were the Celts. To the South were the Greeks.

The history of Florence dates back to the century before Christ.

One of the hills close to Fiseole is supposed to be the place where Leonardo made a failed attempt to fly with one of his inventions.

English Cemetery:

The bus drove us back to the City Centre in Florence. We went past the English Cemetery. Elizabeth Browning, the poet Robert Browning’s wife is buried on this little mound. It is amusing to learn that it is named English cemetery because anyone non Italian was branded as English. (We have a parallel closer home where anyone below the Vindhyas is termed a Madrasi!) The Browning couple spent 17 years in Florence. Now, we know where the poet got part of his inspiration- from Florence! The city is beautiful.

The City Centre is surrounded by 7 city gates- arched structures which marked the periphery of the original city. We come across these arches during our walks across the city.

 The Arno River:

The bus stopped by the Arno River. It flows through the city and has a number of old, stylish bridges spanning it – a little like the river Seine in Paris. We get a nice view of this from the Uffizi museum.

Holy Cross Church:

From the Arno River, a short walk takes us to the Santa Croce (Holy Cross Church). It has a white marble façade quite similar to the Duomo. The order of St Francis did a lot of relief work around this area especially during the times when the River Arno flooded this low-lying area. They became popular and the who’s who of Italian Renaissance is buried in this church: Michelangelo and Machiavelli being notable ones. (Da Vinci is missing because he migrated to France later in life and is buried there. Dante, the father of Italian language is also missing because he was banished from Florence.)

The River Arno caused flooding even as late as 1966. There’s a mark close to the first floor of one of the buildings which bears testimony to this incident.

Next, we walked to a little landing from where buildings from different eras are visible. A 12^th century tower and a later structure attributed to Da Vinci’s studio are the well known ones. It is here that Da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa. That fact alone raises the place to a different dimension. Today, a café occupies that prime spot!

A row of vintage cars take a noisy turn at the street. An auto race of sorts is underway as well!

Piazza outside Uffizi Museum:

A few steps and we are at the Piazza outside the Uffizi museum. It is here that the huge marble sculptures that we’ve read about so much, greet us. A replica of David towers in front of us exactly at the same spot where Michelangelo’s David stood for 300 years. (Presently, the real David is at the Academia Gallery).

On one side is Hercules and on the other Poseidon. The human body – majestic and perfect, with rippling muscles is the highlight in all these larger than life figures. We are simply awestruck and don’t know how to react. Another masterpiece in this area is by Torcelli. It features a man brandishing a sword in one hand and a human head in another. This is a must-see just for the perfection in execution.

Uffizi Museum:

Soon, we are in the famous Uffizi museum – just as important as the Louvre in Paris. The gallery comprises the collection of the Medici (medi-chi) family who ruled over Florence for close to 6 generations around the fifteenth century. Their offices were housed in this building and hence the name Uffizi (office).  The patronage of the Medici family was responsible for the renaissance that Florence is now synonymous with.

There are close to 48 rooms filled with paintings arranged in a chronological order.

What is renaissance ?

We are yet to get an exact, concise answer. It seems to have various shades of meaning. Etymologically, it means rebirth. Here, it refers to the new direction in art where it broke off from the earlier symbolism to a realistic, lifelike presentation. Also, art moved on from religious themes to other subjects. Another aspect of this change was perspective rendering: the ability to bring a three dimensional presentation on a two-dimensional surface. The usage of vanishing points in paintings to give depth and focus was also tied to this. 

The quartet of Renaissance artists:

When it comes to artists of the Renaissance period, we need to commit four main names to memory: Botticelli (Botti-chelli), Leonardo Da Vinci (Vin-shi), Michelangelo (mik-alaan-gelo) and Rafael.
Botticelli:  Two works must be paid attention to: Birth of Venus and Primavera (spring).  The artist is a master of movement- windswept hair, flowers and clothing.

Leonardo da Vinci: Two works are key here: Annunciation: (The angel Gabriel with Mary) and the Magi: This work is not complete; just the under-painting done in tones of brown. But it illustrates Leonardo’s strengths: Detailed landscaping around the main theme and animated human figures. Earlier, paintings were more arrested in appearance. This new style allows the viewer to also be a “participant in the painting” than an external, neutral observer.

Michelangelo: The “Holy family” is a famous work here. We’re told Michelangelo did not like painting! Sculpture was his passion. His paintings too have a sculpture like quality about them- figures painted in anatomical detail which we just don’t see in anyone else. Mary has a different presentation: both in pose and attire (very Roman).

Michelangelo and Leonardo were contemporaries.

Rafael: Was much younger than the other two and grew up watching them. His presentation of Mary is more traditional (unlike Michelangelo).

We are saturated with art. But then, what else can you talk about in Florence?