Went to the Uffizi today. It's considered one of the finest museums in the world, with works by Botticelli, da Vinci, Michelangelo, Titian, Giotto, Fra Angelico and many others. Passed over a quiet Ponte Vecchio in the early morning.
Having a
Friends of the Uffizi pass meant not having to wait in line, although at 8:15 a.m. on a Tuesday in early March the line wasn't as long as it often is. The Uffizi was built by the Medici to serve as an office building for local governing activities ("uffizi" means "offices"). Years later the family decided to use the upper floors to display art treasures.
One of the joys af a fine art museum is "discovering" beautiful works, even having seen them before. Such a work is an
Annunciation, painted in 1333 by Simone Martini and Lippo Memmi, which preceded masterpieces on the same subject by Fra Angelico, Leonardo da Vinci and others. Since one can hardly provide an adequate written description, here's a link that includes a picture of the painting, with its full title, and some information about it.
While taking photos of the inside of the Uffizi is prohibited, ones taken within of the outside are allowed. Here's the Ponte Vecchio, looking down from the Uffizi.
To the right and over the top of the bridge can be seen Vasari's Corridor, built so the Medici could commute to work from their home in the Pitti Palace, on the south side of the Arno, without encountering anyone they did not wish to encounter. The Arno is running high with the recent rains.
From a terrace on the Uffizi, one has a good view of the Palazzo Vecchio, where the Medici reigned and lived prior to moving to the Pitti Palace, and which still serves as the city hall for Florence.
Below is the main entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio.
Just a typical city hall with a huge tower and Renaissance art within and without. Probably good enough for paying property taxes or picking up a business license, but it wasn't quite adequate for Eleonora di Toledo, wife of Cosimo I di' Medici, who insisted on also buying the Pitti Palace as a summer guest house. The Uffizi has an interesting portrait of Eleonora by Bronzino. She was of Spanish nobility, had eleven children and lived to age 40, dying of malaria.
Later in the day, walking down an alley I noticed some finely stenciled graffiti, perhaps in response to last years Mayan calendar flap. (21 12 12 is December 21, 2012)
Ciao.
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