Sights in Florence's centro storico

A list of the sights between the Duomo and the Uffizi in Florence, Italy

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iExplore Italy trips 2011
• Italy Experience (9 days)
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Botticelli's Birth of Venus, Uffizi, Florence*** The Uffizi - Renaissance painting 101, a cornucopia of Old Masters (Giotto, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, etc.), plus the über-famous paintings of Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Allegory of Spring. One of the world's top galleries, and an absolutely un-missable Florence sight... More

The Duomo (Cathedral) of Florence*** The Duomo (Cathedral) - The cathedral of Florence its ingenious and noble dome by Brunelleschi, the baptistery's Gates of Paradise, Giotto's bell tower, and a museum of statues by Michelangelo and Donatello... Full story

Statues in the Cathedral Museum of Florence** Museo dell'Opera del Duomo - A wonderful little museum hidden behind the cathedral and home to all sorts of works that used to decorate it: sculptures by Donatello and Michelangelo, Ghiberti's original panels from the Gates of Paradise, and the secrets behind Brunelleschi's revolutionary dome. More

Piazza della Signoria, Florence*** Piazza della Signoria - A lively, statue-studded square lined with cafés and home to the Gothically imposing, fortress-like Palazzo Vecchio, off which stretches the "U" of the Uffizi Galleries, Florence's great art museum... Full Story

Palazzo Vecchio, Florence** Palazzo Vecchio - Florence's Town Hall since medieval times, the bits not being used by city government are a testament to the Medici Grand Dukes and their talent for self-aggrandizement (also, the most overlooked Michelangelo sculpture in town). More

Ponte Vecchio, Florence*** The Ponte Vecchio - Hanging off either side of this ancient bridge over the Arno are strings of teensy shops selling gold and jewelry, some of them dating back to the Renaissance... Full Story

Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Firenze** The Bargello - What the Uffizi is to paintings, the Bargello is to sculpture: Donatello, Michelangelo, Giambologna, and many more. More

An astrolab in the Museo della Scienza in Florence* Museum of Science - Wonderful, often-overlooked museum dedicated to the history of scientific inquiry, especially its early flowering in Renaissance Italy—which is to say, there's a whole lot of Galileo memorabilia, from the telescopes he used to discover the moons of Jupiter (which helped bolster his blasphemous theory that the Sun, not the earth, was at the center of our solar system; this got him in deep trouble with the Inquisition) to his shriveled middle finger (what would an Italian institution be without a holy relic of some sort?) A visit makes a great break from all that art... Full story

The Orsanmichele church in Florence* Orsanmichele - This former granary—which, given its location halfway down the historic center's major street, you'll keep passing as you criss-cross Florence—is ringed by (replica) statues of saints by Donatello, Ghiberti, and Verrocchio, and contains a massive and gorgeous gothic altar by Andrea Orcagna... Full story

Detail of the Ghirlandaio frescoes in the church of Santa Trinita* Santa Trìnita - This was the first Gothic church in Florence, built in 1250–58, perhaps by Nicola Pisano (but likely by a lesser-known artist), and best-known for the richness of its Renaissance frescoes—especially the courtly works by Domenico Ghirlandaio in the Sassetti Chapel—nominally of religious events, but populated by parades of contemporary figures (including Lorenzo de' Medici and his kids) in scenes reproducing faithfully the squares and streets of late 15th century Florence... Full story

Florence's Piazza della RepubblicaPiazza della Repubblica - This large pedestrian square with a small carousel in the middle is today hemmed in by palazzi and gracious loggie lined by shops and classy 19th century cafes. However, it was originally the site of the forum (main square) for the ancient Roman settlement of Fiorentin and by the Middle Ages had become the city's Jewish ghetto... Full story

Casa di Dante in FlorenceDante's "House" - A medieval town home in Dante's old neighborhood (not his actual house) with a tiny museum dedicated to the great poet. Honestly, only scholars and confirmed literature nerds will be at all interested in going inside... Full story

Florence's Mercato Nuovo, or Mercato del Porcellino, or mercato della PagliaMercato Nuovo - Florence's old covered "Straw Market" actually dates back to the 11th century, but has been called the "New Market" since 1551, when it became shaded by a lovely Renaissance loggia. It still has a stall or two selling the straw hats and bags for which it was once famous, but mostly it's tourist souvenirs now. Be sure to rub for good luck the snout of the bronze porcellino (boar) on the south side (a baroque copy of an ancient Roman statue)... Full story

Badia FiorentinaBadia Fiorentina - Florence's only pointy bell tower rises above a Benedictine abbey and Gothic church where Dante once gazed longingly at his Beatrice. The interior has an uninspired baroque overlay, but there are also tombs sculpted by Mina da Fiesole and Bernardo Rossellino, a painting by Giorgio Vasari, several nice but ruinous frescoes by Nardo di Cione, and Filippino Lippi's 1485 Madonna Appearing to St. Bernard. Lovely Renaissance cloisters... Full story

Church of Santa Marghertia de' CerchiSanta Margherita de' Cerchi - A tiny medieval church with several Dante associations. Though the Badia was the big church in the neighborhood, most folks worshipped at Santa Margherita de' Cerchi, founded in the 12th century and just up the block from the Dante Museum. This wonderfully spare medieval church has a lovely altarpiece of the Madonna Enthroned with Four Saints by Neri di Bicci, and regularly hosts music concerts... Full Story


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This material was last updated January 2011. All information was accurate at the time.

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