Category Archives: Fun
Judith and Holofernes (Donatello), the famous statue in Palazzo Vecchio
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The bronze sculpture Judith and Holofernes dated back to 1460 is developed by Donatello at around the end of his career and is been represented as the Hall of Lilies (Sala dei Gigli), in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, Italy. One replica of the original copy is situated there at the sculpture’s original positions on the Piazza della Signoria as in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. It therefore, depicts the killing of the Assyrian general Holofernes by Judith and is noticeable as primest Renaissance sculptures as to be thought around as with four different faces and objectives.
The statue was constructed by Cosimo de’ Medici as a figurative decoration for tt tui decoration for the fountain in the garden of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi. It is standing there along with Donatello’s David, as showing up both tyrant slayers. Even these two statues are one of the earliest freestanding Italian Renaissance statues. Judith is known as to be the symbol of liberty, virtue and victory of the weak above the strong as in a common cause. There she stands powerful and strong with high yielding swords. The statue while at its construction was gilded and its shine while in sunlight use to let people to look at it. In order to carry out the gilding of the statue the bronze there was cast in about 11 parts. The base of the sculpture there remains as to be a cushions, a naturalistic device for the first time was employed by Donatello for his St. Mark in the Orsanmichele.
On the granite pedestal of the statue, there it reads as like, “Kingdoms fall through luxury, cities rise through virtues. Behold the neck of pride severed by the hand of humility.” According, to the these rules the particular and dramatic and detailed statue is thus named as to be metaphor of the Medici rule, and the defenders of Florentine liberty, as related to Judith, it is a slayer of the tyrant Holofernes and therefore is the defender of the people.
This particular view is further on supported by the second inscription on the pedestal that even read as, “The salvation of the state. Piero de’ Medici son of Cosimo dedicated this statue of a woman both to liberty and to fortitude, whereby the citizens with unvanquished and constant heart might return to the republic.” In the year, 1495, the sculpture was there placed on the Piazza della Signoria, there at the main door of the Palazzo Vecchio as in memory of the expulsion of Piero di Lorenzo de’ Medici from Florence and the introduction of the Florentine republic under Girolamo Savonarola.
This time, this statue symbolized the expulsion of the tyrannical Medici. The statue was later moved to the courtyard inside the Palazzo Vecchio, and still later into the Loggia dei Lanzi. In 1919, it was then placed on the left side of the Palazzo Vecchio. It was replaced by a bronze copy in 1988 and the original, after restoration, was given a final place in the Sala dei Gigli inside the Palazzo Vecchio.
Relais Santa Croce, 5 stars hotel in Florence
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Relais Santa Croce five stars hotel in Florence
• Overview of the Hotel: This enormous and awesome five star hotel is located at in a mesmerizing 18th century place. It is one of the most prolific and complete structures located at the historic center of Florence. It is situated between the Basilica di Santa Croce and the Duomo, Relais Santa Croce within the walking distance from the Florence’s primary monuments like as Uffizi Gallery and Ponte Vecchio. The hotel is a semblance between modern furnishings and classical décor. It is ideally suited for business travelers as well as tourist and is served by courteous and warm staff. The hotel has 24 rooms and it is the chain of Baglioni Hotels.
• Amenities at the Hotel: As for facilities in the hotel, the general one includes as restaurant, bar, 24-hour front desk, newspapers, non-smoking rooms, rooms/facilities for disabled guests, elevator, express check-in/check-out, safe, soundproofed rooms, heating, design hotel, baggage storage, all public and private spaces non-smoking, air conditioning and designated smoking area. As for services in the hotel that comprises massage, jacuzzi, turkish/steam bath, hammam, room service, meeting/banquet facilities, business center, babysitting/child services, laundry, dry cleaning, vip room facilities, breakfast in the room, ironing service, honeymoon suite, currency exchange, shoe shine, car rental, fax/photocopying and ticket service.
• Hotel Rules: As for the hotel rules, there are some general policies in the hotel and those policies even can change according to the type of room one is staying in. The Check in time into hotel is 14:00 hours and check out time is between 07:00 – 12:00 hours. The Cancellation and prepayment policies keep on changing in hotel according to the room type. Pets are not allowed in the hotel. The hotel also accepts cards like American Express, Visa, Euro/Mastercard, Diners Club, JCB, Maestro and CartaSi.
• Hotel Room Types and Rates:
Superior Double Room: € 275 (Per Night)
Deluxe Double Room: € 330 (Per Night)
Exclusive Double Room: € 358 (Per Night)
Junior Suite: € 468 (Per Night)
Suite: € 715 (Per Night)
Superior Double Room (Advance Purchase): € 275 (Per Night)
The Decameron, the lore telling cult in Florence
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The Decameron is a collection of about 100 novellas as described by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio. It started the literary creation in about 1350 and finished it in 1353. This is considered as a medieval allegorical work that is better known for its coarse tales of love, that are contained about in all categories from erotic to the tragic. According to some experts certain parts of the tales have received the influence of The Book of God. Many recognized writers like as Geoffrey Chaucer, are told to be inspired from the The Decameron. The title is an abbreviated form for the two Greek Words as known to be “10″ and “day”.
The Decameron is formed in the structure of the frame narrative, or frame tale. The Decameron has an integral place as into the history of the novel and was completed by the Giovanni Boccaccio in 1353. It starts with a description of the Bubonic Plague (Black Death) and delves into an introduction of a group of seven young women and three young men who fled from plague-ridden Florence for a villa outside of the city walls. And there they share stories each for everyone for about ten nights at the Villa. The Decameron is a distinctive work, in shows in varieties like physical, psychological and social impact had the Bubonic Plague at that part of the Europe.
One of the women, Pampinea, while during the narration becomes the Queen for the first day and thereafter king or queen used to tell you will succeed then and decides the themes for current day story telling. There each day happens to be a new theme assigned there except for days 1 and 9. Boccaccio there used to provide introduction and conclusion for each and every story including the day activities before and after the story-telling. These inserts regularly involves the transcriptions of Italian folk songs and references to various Italian folk dances.
As with respect to the real interpretation of the frame narrative as adopted in Decameron even provides a unity in respect to the philosophical outlook and interdependence. Most o the stories there appears to be weaved around the theme of Lady Fortune and the rise and fall of a person through the external influences of the “Wheel of Fortune”. The author of Decameron Boccaccio was been educated in the style of Dante’s Divine Comedy that even used and traced different level of allegory to make a relation between the literal events of the story and the Christian message. Many details of the Decameron are yet related to the medieval sense of numerology and the mystical significance.
The Westin Excelsior, 5 stars hotels in Florence
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Westin Excelsior, five stars hotels in Florence
• Overview of the Hotel:The Westin Excelsior Hotel is situated in Piazza Ognissanti at the bank of the Arno River in the center of Florence’s most prestigious fashion district. The hotel has been quite favorite among international celebrities like for many years and is considered as an important as for Florentine business and cultural life. It restaurant has ample specialization in routine Mediterranean dishes. Hotel has about 171 rooms and it is the chain of the Westin hotel.
• Amenities at the Hotel: With respect to general services in the hotel it provides the facilities like restaurant, bar, 24-hour front desk, newspapers, non-smoking rooms, rooms/facilities for disabled guests, family rooms, elevator, safe, heating, baggage storage and air conditioning. As for services in the hotel there prominent ones are room service, meeting/banquet facilities, business center, babysitting/child services, laundry, dry cleaning, breakfast in the room, ironing service, currency exchange, shoe shine and VIP room facilities.
• Hotel Rules: As for hotel rules there are some rules that are imperative for every person to follow who is visiting the hotel as guest. However, there are certain hotel rule that even varies from hotel rooms to hotel rooms. The check in time into hotel is 15:00-00:00 hours whereas the check out time there is between 07:00 -12:00 hours. Cancellation and prepayment policies too depend upon the type of room where a person is staying in the hotel. Pets are allowed in the hotel on request. The hotel accepts credit cards like American Express, Visa, Euro/Mastercard and Diners Club.
• Hotel Room Types and Rates:
Deluxe Single Room: € 187.20 (Per Night)
Deluxe Double Room: € 259.20 (Per Night)
Deluxe Double Room with River View: € 316.80(Per Night)
Premium Deluxe Double Room: € 283.20 (Per Night)
Premium Deluxe Double Room with River View: € 340.80(Per Night)
Deluxe Triple Room: € 359(Per Night)
Junior Suite: € 864(Per Night)
Deluxe Double Room: € 290(Per Night)
Deluxe Double Room with River View: € 350(Per Night)
Premium Deluxe Double Room: € 315(Per Night)
Premium Deluxe Double Room with River View: € 375(Per Night)
Gabinetto Vieusseux, the revolving library in Florence
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The Gabinetto Scientifico Letterario G. P. Vieusseux, that was suddenly resurfaced around in 1819 by Giovan Pietro Vieusseux, a merchant from Geneva, is a famous library in Florence, Italy. That is known for relating the culture of Italy with that of the other European countries as in around the 19th century and is even a primary reference point for the Risorgimento movement.
The library initially was started as the reading room that even provided leading European periodicals for Florentines and visitors from outside in a setting and environment that even encouraged conversation and the exchange of ideas. This circulating library provides the latest and best publications in Italian, French and English and is located next to the reading room. The legends from the Europe were the regular visitors at this library. The primary persons who visited the library are the likes as Giacomo Leopard, Alessandro Manzoni, Stendhal, Schopenhauer, J. F. Cooper, Thackeray, Dostoevsky, Mark Twain, Émile Zola, André Gide, Kipling, Aldous Huxley and D. H. Lawrence. The institute personally was under the control of the Vieusseux family until 1919 when it transformed into a foundation that also had a governing body and was supervised by the Mayor of Florence or its delegates. The work to expand and enrich the library kept on going till the 20th century even under the direction of the noted intellectuals of the time like as Bonaventura Tecchi, Eugenio Montale and, for forty years under Alessandro Bonsanti. The foundation also organizes the meetings, conferences and exhibitions as through out the year. In 1995, the quarterly review as founded by Bonsanti in 1966 started its publication.
The library has a good number of collections and books as showing up its cosmopolitan character in its two sections, one the lending library and the other one the reading room for journals. Its present collection has about 300,000 monographs as in different languages as Italian, French, English, and some other sources in German language as well. The library too is quite well with respect to the leisure reading as well as it provides the large collection of detective stories and best sellers of various types. The library has about 2,700 journals in different languages about what 600 are from the nineteenth century. About 350 journals in the library are yet in circulation.
In October 1975, the Contemporary Archives started in the library with an aim to collect the diverse material as related to impressive contemporary persons. This Archive is kept into novel fourteenth-century rooms of the city-owned Palazzo Corsini Suarez, which in itself and its landscape is quite different from different structures in the city. The library too has a Conservation Center that is the part of the Gabinetto Vieusseux that even look around the physical protection of properties as kept in the Institute.
Hotel Duomo, Florence Hotels near Duomo
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Hotel Duomo, Florence Hotels near Duomo
Overview of the Hotel: The historic centre of Florence attracts millions of tourists each year and was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982. Florence is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and its artistic, historic and cultural heritage and impact in the world remains to this day. The city has a major impact in music, architecture, education, cuisine, fashion, philosophy, science and religion. The historic centre of Florence contains elegant squares (piazzas), Renaissance palaces (palazzi), academies, parks, gardens, churches, monasteries, museums, art galleries and ateliers. Hotel Duomo bears a close proximity to the Cathedral and the same outstanding views from the majority of rooms. The Hotel Duomo is set in Palazzo Gondi, a 14th century building located in the heart of Florence, directly on the Cathedral square. The building has an elevator. Hotel Duomo is surrounded by many of Florence’s landmarks, and close to all the others. The area is also famous for exclusive shopping. Enjoy the quiet of double glazed windows in your room, start your days on a rich buffet breakfast and get ready to explore Florence. Hotel Duomo offers special terms at a nearby garage. There is a Dutch speaking receptionist.
Amenities at the Hotel: The hotel has a Bar, 24-Hour Front Desk, Terrace, Non-Smoking Rooms, Elevator, Safe, Heating, and Baggage Storage. It also offers Breakfast in the Room, and Fax/Photocopying services. Wired internet is available in the hotel rooms and costs EUR 3 per hour. Private parking is possible at a location nearby (reservation is not needed) and costs EUR 30 per day.
Hotel Rules: The Check-in time for the hotel is from 14:00 hours and the Check-out time is until 12:00 hours. Cancellation and prepayment policies vary by room type. All children under 6 years stay free of charge when using existing bedding. All children under 2 years stay free of charge for cots. Maximum capacity of extra beds/babycots in a room is 1. Any type of extra bed/cot or crib is upon request and needs to be confirmed by the hotel. Pets are not allowed. Accepted credit cards are American Express, Visa, Euro/Mastercard, Diners Club, and CartaSi. The hotel reserves the right to pre-authorize credit cards prior to arrival. Buffet breakfast is served in the mornings from 7:30am until 10am.
Hotel Room Types and Rates:
Single Room: € 110
Included in room price: 10 % VAT, Buffet breakfast
Double Room: € 190
Included in room price: 10 % VAT, Buffet breakfast
Triple Room: € 190
Included in room price: 10 % VAT, Buffet breakfast
Golden Tower Hotel, 5 star hotels in Florence
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Golden Tower Hotel, five star hotels in Florence
- Overview of the Hotel: This is a luxury boutique hotel that has its own spa center and it is located at Florence’s most renowned district center. Palazzo Strozzi is just closed to it. After having a day’s tour of Florence the next you can visit through the Golden Tower’s spa, where you can get a hydromassage pool, a Turkish bath and a sauna. There an elaborate range of massages and beauty treatments too are available. The hotel has about 27 rooms.
- Amenities in Hotel: Among the general facilities in the hotel the most prominent ones are bar, 24-hour front desk, newspapers, non-smoking rooms, rooms/facilities for disabled guests, elevator, express check-in/check-out, safe, soundproofed rooms, heating, design hotel, baggage storage, all public and private spaces non-smoking, air conditioning. In the services available at hotel the major ones are room service, meeting/banquet facilities, laundry, vip room facilities, breakfast in the room, honeymoon suite, currency exchange and fax/photocopying.
- Hotel Rules: For every visiting guest in the hotel there are some common policies that are imperative for every visitor to follow. However, these hotel policies and rules can differ from hotel rooms to hotel rooms. The check in time into hotel is 15:00 hours whereas the checkout time is there until 12:00 hours. The cancellation and prepayment policies there vary from hotel room to hotel room. Children below 12 years can stay there for free of charge while using the existing beddings. Pets are not allowed in the hotel. The hotel also accepts the credit cards like American Express, Visa, Euro/Mastercard, Diners Club, JCB and CartaSi.
- Hotel Room Type and Rates:
Double or Twin Room: € 242 (Per Night)
Deluxe Double or Twin Room: € 286 (Per Night)
Junior Suite: € 561 (Per Night)
Grand Hotel Minerva, Florence Hotels near Santa Maria Novella
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Grand Hotel Minerva, FlorenceHotels near Santa Maria Novella
Overview of the Hotel: Florence is filled with many other churches stuffed with some of the finest art in the world – San Miniato al Monte, San Lorenzo, Santa Maria Novella, Santa Trinita, the Brancacci Chapel at Santa Maria della Carmine, Santa Croce, Santo Spirito, SS Annunziata, Ognissanti, and more. The Uffizi and the Pitti Palace are two of the most famous picture galleries in the world. But the heart and soul of Florence are in the two superb collections of sculpture, the Bargello and the Museum of the Works of the Duomo. They are filled with the brilliant, revolutionary creations of Donatello, Verrochio, Desiderio da Settignano, Michelangelo, and so many other masterpieces that create a body of work unique in the world. Grand Hotel Minerva is centrally located with Santa Maria Novella Train Station is just 330 yards away. The Hotel Minerva Grand has a 24-hour front desk and staff can provide information on visiting Florence’s main attractions. The hotel has a rooftop swimming pool and sun terrace with views of historic central Florence. The 102 air-conditioned rooms offer free Wi-Fi access and satellite TV. Some have views of Florence Cathedral, just 550 yards away. Hotel Minerva’s restaurant serves traditional Italian dishes and you can enjoy a drink from the rooftop bar.
Amenities at the Hotel: The facilities offered at the hotel include Restaurant, Bar, 24-Hour Front Desk, Newspapers, Terrace, Non-Smoking Rooms, Family Rooms, Elevator, Safe, Heating, Baggage Storage, and Air Conditioning. The guests can enjoy Outdoor Swimming Pool. The services availed at the hotel vary from Room Service, Meeting/Banquet Facilities, Business Center, Laundry, Ironing Service, Currency Exchange, to Fax/Photocopying. Wi-fi is available in the hotel rooms and is free of charge. Wired internet is available in public areas and is free of charge. Private parking is possible on site (reservation is not needed) and costs EUR 28 per day.
Hotel Rules: The check in time for the hotel is from 14:00 hours and the check out time is until 12:00 hours. Cancellation and prepayment policies vary by room type. One child under 2 years stays free of charge when using existing bedding. One child under 2 years stays free of charge in a baby cot. Maximum capacity of babycots in a room is 1. Pets are allowed on request. No extra charges. Accepted credit cards are American Express, Visa, Euro/Mastercard, Diners Club, and JCB. The hotel reserves the right to pre-authorize credit cards prior to arrival.
Hotel Room Types and Rates:
Classic Double or Twin Room: € 500
Included in room price: 10 % VAT, Buffet breakfast
• FREE cancellation
• Breakfast included
Classic Triple Room: € 550
Included in room price: 10 % VAT, Buffet breakfast
• FREE cancellation
• Breakfast included
Suite (2 Adults): € 399
Prices are per room.
• FREE cancellation
Florence Duomo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
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Santa Maria del Fiore that is also popular as the cathedral of Florence is famous for its comparatively different dome in the Renaissance style. The dome commonly known as the Saint Mary of the Flower is being referred to the lily, the symbol of Florence. The remarkable Gothic cathedral complex which has the structures like the Duomo, the famous baptistery and a campanile.
The Florence Duomo cathedral is constructed on an earlier site of the Santa Reparata. The cathedral was inspired by the beauty and grandeur of the new cathedrals in Pisa and Siena. The cathedral was designed by Arnolfo di Cambio in 1294 being as the largest Roman Catholic Church in the world. The construction of the cathedral started on September 8, 1296. After the death of Arnolfo n 1302, the progress of the work of the cathedral was being slowed down. In 1331, the Arte della Lana (Guild of Wool Merchants) once began the construction of the cathedral and appointed Giotto as overseer for the work in 1334. His major achievement was the campanile, but he died in 1337. The work of the cathedral remained unfinished until 1355 and the job resumed under the series of architects like Francesco Talenti, Alberto Arnoldi, Giovanni d’Ambrogio, Giovanni di Lapo Ghini, Neri di Fioravante and Orcagna. The nave was finished by 1380, and by 1418 only the dome was uncompleted. Thus in 1436, the cathedral was consecrated by Pope Eugemius IV on March 25, 1436.
The dome of the cathedral is considered as the only ‘octagonal’ dome that is constructed without any wooden support and was the huge dome yet constructed during at that time. The front of the cathedral was destroyed in 1587 and was kept in that condition till 19th century. Work began for façade in 1876 and completed by 1887. The huge bronze doors are there from date 1899 to 1903.
There are many areas in the interior of the cathedral that are worth watching and appreciating. Some of the popular works there follows as panelling in the sacristy by Benedetto and Giuliano Da Maiano), Fresco of Niccolò da Tolentino on the north wall by Andrea del Castagno. Another worth watching spots in the cathedral are reliefs of the resurrection and ascension and the work on the sacristy door with Michelozzo; choir loft, now in the Museo del Duomo. Dante telling about the Divine Comedy is another great piece of art worth watching over there in at the cathedral in Florence. Decoration of west wall clock and mural of Sir John Hawkwood on the north wall, mural of the The Last Judgement in the interior of the dome by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari are other noticeable pieces of art that will impart internal pleaser to anyone visiting the Cathedral.
David, the sculpture master piece by Michelangelo
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David is a great work of art by Renaissance sculpture as formed by him between the duration of 1501 and 1504, by the Italian artist Michelangelo. It is a 5.17 meter marble statue of male nude in standing position. The statue showcases the hero from the Bible David that too is a popular subject among art lovers in Florence.
The statue was originally constructed as one of a series of prophets as to be kept along the roofline of the east end of Florence Cathedral. However, the statue was kept at a public square located outside the Palazzo della Signoria, which is a seat of civic government in Florence. The statue was unveiled on 8 September 1504. Due to the nature of the hero that this Statute showcases it soon became the symbol of the defense of civil liberties as represented in the Florentine Republic. It was at time was an independent city state as surrounded and threatened by the much powerful rival states by the hegemony and status of the Medici family. The eyes of David, with a warning glare, are looking towards Rome. Later on the statue was moved away from the Accademia Gallery in Florence in 1873, and replaced by a replica at the original location.
Before, Michelangelo’s involvement as according the project of the overseers of the office of Works of the Duomo (Operai), contracted Agostino to create a sculpture of David. A block of marble was provided, from a quarry in Carrara, a town in the Apuan Alps in northern and work was remained incomplete unless it was handover to Michelangelo on August 16, 1501. On January 25, 1504, when the sculpture was nearing completion, Florentine authorities had decided to keep that six ton under the roof of the Loggia dei Lanzi on Piazza della Signoria. In June, 1504 David was installed in front of the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio, replacing Donatello’s bronze sculpture of Judith and Holofernes, which embodied a comparable theme of heroic resistance. On 12 November 2010, a fiberglass replica of the David was installed on the roofline of Florence Cathedral, for one day only.
Michelangelo’s David is entirely different from as in the Michelangelo’s sculpture from as he is depicted as a Biblical hero. According to a common view David is shown before his battle with Goliath. The facial expression’s of David as appears to be the tense and equally ready for the David’s face. The contrast between the intense expression and his calm pose shows the condition of David to fight Goliath as immediately before the war is about to take place. However some other expert interprets it as time immediately after the war when David was contemplating about his victory.