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The Duomo, Santa Maria del Fiore
The famous cathedral of Florence
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The Bapistry of the Duomo
The Campanile or Bell Tower
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Wall Detail
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Piazza of the Duomo
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Duomo, Santa Maria del Fiore
A distinctive feature of Florence's skyline is the dome of the cathedral (Duomo), Santa Maria del Fiore. The building itself, located due north of the Piazza della Signoria, was begun by the sculptor Arnolfo di Cambio in 1296. Numerous local artists continued to work on it during the following century and a half. The painter Giotto designed its sturdy bell tower (campanile) in 1334. Yet, the massive octagonal cupola (1420-36) that truly dominates both the church and the city was the proud achievement of Filippo Brunelleschi, master architect and sculptor. Opposite the cathedral stands the Baptistery; the building dates from the 11th century but was believed by Florentines to be a surviving Roman monument when they commissioned for it a series of bronze doors with relief sculptures . The third pair of these doors, by Lorenzo Ghiberti, were of such rare beauty that Michelangelo christened them the Gates of Paradise. This statement was excerpted from
euroweb.
With the last of Gertrude Meyer's Florence collection, we go back to Livorno and ms Rotterdam. We've had a long day of touring beautiful Tuscany.
Come, join us on the ship, then we'll go to Ajaccio, on the French island Corsica,
birthplace of Emperor Napolian Boneparte.
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