31 October, 2013
Florence, Italy Florence, a city founded by Romans in 59 B.C., is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence, a city famous for its history. The city is surrounded by rolling hills that are covered by villas and farms, vineyards, and orchards, and many streams. The climate is either hot and humid or cool and wet, depending on which season it is. A walk through the city would include copious scenery of sculptures, churches, palaces statues, all describing its rich Italian culture. Florence is one of the most statuesque cities in Italy, with a history as unique as the city itself. Renaissance in Italy first hit the city of Florence, and are more pervasive here than anywhere else. The city's economy and its writers, painters, architects, and philosophers all made Florence a model of Renaissance culture. Florence is home to a multitudinous amount of churches, public buildings, and houses that were built with Romanesque or Gothic architecture. Many new architectural styles were being created here, including the new concept, the dome, commissioned by Fillippo Brunelleschi. The first dome is the top of the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, one of the many cathedrals in Florence. Florence has a numerous amount of churches throughout the city. During the renaissance, Christianity and the Roman Catholic Church were at war, and because of this, there were many new church additions. Churches throughout Florence include the Duomo, the church of Santa Reparata, Basilica of San Lorenzo, Cattedrale di San Romolo, San Giovanni Baptistery. Aside from many churches being built during the renaissance, there were many statues, paintings, and museums. Statues like the Florentine Pieta, The Slaves, The David, Saint George, Perseus, all stand in Florence. The city has inspired paintings like the Trinity, The Annunciation, Desposition from the Cross, Mosaics in the Baptistery, Madonna della Seggiola, Procession of the Magi, The Life of Saint Francis, Primavera. And of course, museums had to be built to hold these pieces; some of the most popular in Florence are the Uffizi Gallery, Palazzo Pitti, Bargello, Palazzo Vecchio, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Museo Galileo, Palazzo Davanzati. One of the reasons Florence strived, is because all this beautiful art work was being made. Florence became a musical centre during the renaissance; four kinds of musical patronage were created in the city for sacred and secular music: state, corporate, church, and private. The Florentine Camerata came to order in the mid-16th century and experimented with setting tales of Greek mythology to music and staging the result—and the first operas were born. Opera remains very important to the city, even now. Florence is not too different in present than in past. Art is still being percolated, but it does not have the authentic renaissance style as most artwork when Florence underwent a period of striving. Many good movies have come out giving center stage to Florence. Fashion in present day Florence is very unique. Florentines love to dress up, and make any excuse to wear their best outfits. Gucci was founded in Florence Italy, starting small but now is very