The octagonal Baptistery of Saint John is clad in geometric panels of white Carrara and green Prato marble. It sits directly across from the Duomo, distinct for its squat, fortress-like proportions compared to the soaring cathedral. In…
Ancient Roman Florence
This walk peels back Florence's Renaissance facade to trace the 2,000-year-old street plan of ancient Roman Florentia. You will follow medieval alleys built over a massive amphitheater, find repurposed temple columns, and stand where the Roman forum once thrived.
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1. Baptistery of St. John
2. Torre della Pagliazza
The Torre della Pagliazza is a squat, horseshoe shaped stone tower squeezed into a corner of the Piazza Santa Elisabetta. It remains the oldest standing structure in Florence. While the rest of the city built upward, this tower served as a…
3. Piazza della Repubblica
The Piazza della Repubblica features a triumphal arch, the Arcone, which marks the exact center of Florence. This wide, open square occupies the site of the ancient Roman forum and the medieval Jewish Ghetto. In the eighteen eighties, the…
4. Via delle Terme
Via delle Terme gets its name from the Roman baths that occupied this ground two millennia ago. While the baths vanished long ago, the street name survives as a marker of the ancient city layout. In the fourteenth century, the powerful…
5. Palazzo Vecchio
The Palazzo Vecchio features a jagged, asymmetrical tower that rises nearly three hundred feet above the Piazza della Signoria. Florence commissioned this fortress in twelve ninety-nine to house the city's highest magistrates, the Priors.…
6. Ex Anfiteatro Romano di Firenze
The remnants of the Roman amphitheater sit buried beneath the medieval buildings of the Santa Croce neighborhood. You can identify the site by the distinct elliptical curve of the Via Torta, which follows the precise footprint of the…
7. Piazza dei Peruzzi
Piazza dei Peruzzi is defined by the tight, jagged wedge of the Palazzo Peruzzi rising above the street level. In the fourteenth century, this cramped space served as the private stronghold for the Peruzzi family, one of the wealthiest…