Piazza del Duomo and Piazza San Giovanni are the religious heart of Florence. Some of the city’s symbolic buildings are concentrated in the two squares, such as the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Baptistery of San Giovanni and the Giotto Bell Tower. The baptistery is the oldest building in Florence, its octagonal shape refers to Christian numerology and the concept of infinity to which the sacrament of baptism, celebrated here, is profoundly connected.
The Florence Cathedral
The cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore known as the Duomo is a splendid example of Tuscan Gothic architecture with polychrome marble inlays that characterize the entire building on the outside. Here, Filippo Brunelleschi built the first self-supporting dome in the history of modern architecture between 1420 and 1436, inventing innovative machinery that allowed him to raise his work to a dizzying height never seen before.
On our tour we will visit the interior of the Duomo, including a fascinating archaeological site that corresponds to the first cathedral of Florence, Santa Reparata, built in the 4th century. Among the most surprising finds, the ancient mosaic floor with the image of a large peacock, symbol of resurrection and the names of the donors who financed the work.
Museo dell’Opera del Duomo
After walking among the monuments of the square we could delve deeper into some works that once decorated the religious heart of Florence by visiting the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo.
Among the masterpieces preserved here, they are striking for their quality and importance; the wooden Magdalene by Donatello, the room with the reconstruction of the medieval façade of the cathedral, on a 1:1 scale, the Pietà Bandini by Michelangelo and the Door of Paradise, a 15th century gilded bronze work by master Lorenzo Ghiberti. The ticket which allows you to visit the monuments of the square and which lasts three days, also includes the climbing of the bell tower and the dome of the Cathedral which, upon reservation, you can do independently at the end of the tour or in the following two days.