20 FLORENCE CURIOSITIES

Florence is one of the most famous, visited and beautiful cities in all of Italy. Walking through its streets is like doing it in a huge outdoor art gallery. Florence It could be defined as the world capital of the Renaissance. But not only art lives the city, during its many centuries of history, rare events, legends and curious facts have appeared to stay. If you are a traveler in search of interesting facts and mysteries pay attention: in this post we will tell you 20 curiosities of Florence.

1. Florence was the home of numerous illustrious characters and important for the future of Italian history. The two best examples are Leonardo (who was born in a nearby town, Vinci) and Dante, the father of literature and the Italian language as we know it.

2. Dante's masterpiece (The Divine Comedy) is surrounded by curiosities and symbolisms. Dante was obsessed with numbers, especially with the 3 that appears again and again in the book: it is formed by 100 songs divided into 3 parts, each one follows a scheme of 1 + 33 + 33 + 33 parts. Throughout the trip Dante passes through 3 zones (hell, purgatory and paradise) and in each one he will be accompanied by a different guides (Virgil, Beatrice and San Bernardo). In hell, cross 3 rivers and climb 3 steps to reach purgatory. It is only one of the mysteries surrounding the masterpiece of Italian literature.

3. Leonardo da Vinci it does not fall short, nor with the curiosities nor with the symbolisms, in many of his works. Not content with being a great painter, throughout his life he was also an architect, sculptor, inventor and scientist. He was dyslexic, vegetarian and was accused of sodomy (he was about to face the wrath of the Inquisition).

4. The Florentine dialect gave rise to the Italian language, but there are words that you use and that come from Florence... An example is "ballot", this term comes from the word "ballotaggio" which in turn comes from "ballotte" that in Florence are chestnuts. And what do chestnuts have to do with ballot? That in the past were used to count the votes! Curious, right?

5. The Florence symbol is a flower: the lily (giglio). There are several legends that try to explain its origin but it seems that the most plausible is that, during the spring, in the area of ​​Florence there are many lilies. No mystery then ...

6. Florence was considered as the place where the Renaissance was born and even earned the nickname "Athens of the Middle Ages”.

7. Although unfortunately he suffered major damage due to the bombings of World War II (especially by the Nazis). One of Hitler's orders was to blow up all the bridges except one: the Old Bridge which, even in his eyes, was too pretty to be shot down.

8. In the Duomo you can see one gargoyle something peculiar: a bull. The story is as follows: near there lived a man whose wife was unfaithful to him with a boy who helped with the decoration of the Cathedral. The horny decided to elaborate the statue of a bull and put it as a gargoyle right in the direction of the poor man's house ... cuckold and trozada.

9. And speaking of DuomoDid you know that some were used 140 years to complete its construction? His great jewel is the emblematic dome of Brunelleschi, to which you can climb, but you will have to climb about 460 steps! Worth? Of course: you will have Florence at your feet!

10. When you visit the Old Palace look at its walls. If you pay attention you will see a profile face carved in the rock. Is the callL'importuno and apparently Michelangelo himself was the author. Apparently whenever he passed through the vicinity of the palace, he was stopped by this person to talk about his problems. One day Michelangelo bored and with his hand tools carved the profile of this man while he continued to vent. Truth or legend? I don't know Rick, it seems fake but who knows?

11. The Budini Gattai Palace It also has a curiosity (at least). On the right side of its facade there is a window that always remains open. Why? It is said that behind that window, a woman in love waited days, months and years for her husband to return from the war. Unfortunately he never did, and after the woman's death the window closed. Then strange things began to happen throughout the palace, so it was decided to open it again, and this time forever.

12. In the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore there's a watch with a curiosity: it goes backwards! It was the work of Paolo Uccello, and is located inside, just above the main door.

13. One of the most popular children's books and loved by all, it was written in Florence at the hands of Carlo Collodi. We talk about Pinocchio!

14. Maybe you never imagined it, but Florence was capital of Italy for a few years (specifically between 1865 and 1871). Do you know which city replaced it? Exact: Rome.

15. Florence is one of the cities that has more pieces of art in the world, being Michelangelo's David One of the most appreciated. Although, as we tell you in this article, it has the worst job in the world! The statue is huge, measuring more than 5 meters, but it does not follow that proportion in its noble parts ... There is a copy in Piazza della Signoria, the original can be visited in the Accademia Gallery.

16. And it is that Florence is so beautiful that, sometimes, it can cause Stendhal syndrome (or florence syndrome). The symptoms are vertigo, palpitations, tremors and confusion, and are caused by artistic beauty. As it is!

17. The Uffizi are the Museum most visited of Florence. But did you know that in the past they were simple offices? The word Uffizi, in fact refers to "Uffici", the Italian translation of offices.

18. One of the gastronomic specialties of the city is “the fiorentina”A lovely and super tender steak. Although another typical dish may not be so appetizing: we talk about lampredotto, a snack with a somewhat peculiar ingredient, beef stomach!

19. Ok, Milan is the mecca of fashion, but Florence has nothing to envy: here were born world famous mracas Gucci or Cavalli.

20. Before leaving Florence, if you want to recharge your good luck, you have to go see the Porcellino Fountain, touch the snout and insert a coin into the mouth of the small wild boar. If the coin falls through the slits you will be lucky. If it gets stuck… try again that superstition didn't work out XD

Had you heard these legends and curiosities of Florence? Do you know any more?

Video: 10 Important Things to Know Before Visiting Florence (April 2024).