Firenze Day Two

8:30 Group Breakfast. Our hotel came with a complimentary breakfast. The breakfast was good, but the granola ran out rather early and the coffee, as Lisa eloquently stated, was more like “anti-coffee.” Nonetheless, we all managed to have a “balanced” breakfast.
10:00 Palazzo Davanzati. At 10 we were given a special tour of the Palazzo Davanzati, a 15th Century house.


Usually the public are not allowed into the upper floors, but we were able to get in for free! The Palazzo had been reconstructed and outfitted with furniture to show the actual living conditions of the inhabitants. Among the most interesting items were a two foot long citrus juicer, a built-in octagonal bread mixer, and a large collection of lace. In addition, most of the rooms were painted with beautiful fictive draperies.


The Palazzo really gave us a feel for how Florentines in the 15th Century lived.
10:30 Piazza della Signoria. We then went to the large Piazza della Signoria, a large open area in front of the old Florentine seat of government.

We learned about the dynamic life of Savonarola, a religious zealot who was preaching apocalyptic messages and warning against hedonism. After enjoying a wealth of power, Savonarola pushed his luck too far and was excommunicated by the pope. Savonarola was then hung in the piazza and burned several times to destroy his remains. The Piazza is also adjacent to a beautiful open air gallery. We then went into the government building, which is now a grand museum.
11:00 Museo del Bargello. No pictures were allowed in the room, but here is one of the central courtyard.

The highlights in the Museo del Bargello were two versions of the David, one by Donatello and the other by Verrocchio. These were the original two David sculptures and formed the basis on which Michelangelo constructed his own masterpiece. There were no pictures allowed in the Museo, but here are online pictures of the two statues.

Verrocchio's David

Donatello's David

As you can see, Donatello’s David is somewhat scandalous: he wears a helmet, boots, and little else. Donatello was allowed to experiment with David because of the protection of the Medici family. Both of the sculptures were surprisingly small, especially when compared with Michelangelo’s David.
On the lower floors were Michelangelo’s Bacchus, the original version of Donatello’s St. George, and the two finalists for the door panel competition of 1401. We all compared the two panels, one by Brunelleschi and the other by Ghiberti, and tried to decide which one we personally thought was better.
12:00 Lunch break. Some of use went across the Ponte Vecchio while others of us started the hunt in search of the best gelato in Florence.

3:00 Uffizi gallery. The Uffizi is a massive gallery with over 40 rooms ranging from medieval art through the 17th Century. One of the favorite rooms was the Botticelli room, which featured both the Primavera and the Birth of Venus. Again, no photos were allowed, so here are some online representations:

The Primavera

The Birth of Venus

I never realized how large these paintings were until I saw them in person. The depictions of Venus are very stylistic and beautiful. Many of us just sat in the middle of the room, basking in the aura of these paintings. The Uffizi also housed some paintings of Venice by Canaletto, some portraits by Rembrandt, and important works by Caravaggio. It was interesting to compare Caravaggio’s version of Abraham and Isaac with those on the door panels.
5:00 After the Uffizi we had some free time. Some of us watched a mime performer while others continued the Florentine Quest.
8:00 A large group of us went across the Ponte Vecchio and found some small restaurants for dinner. We crossed the Ponte Vecchio right around sunset.

Personally, my dinner was delicious: rabbit ravioli and sage chicken.
Overall, a great day with lots of Renaissance art. Wandering around the beautiful city of Firenze brings a fresh breath for all of us as we prepare for the final two weeks of Rome.

-Ben Drum