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culture
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a charming neighbourhood with an ancient heart
a stroll in San Lorenzo
[Alice Whittle]
A Stroll in San Lorenzo has above all been created for Italian and foreign tourists but we are sure that the Florentines themselves will also enjoy it as they obviously love and protect their artistic patrimony and the beauty that they have inherited from the past. Although this volume can be skimmed through like a guide, as it offers various itineraries and describes the streets and monuments, it can also be read like a history book. In just a few pages the stories related to this neighbourhood reconstruct two thousand years of the city's history.
The area grew up around the Basilica of San Lorenzo, consecrated in 393, and the first Florentine cathedral. It continued to develop in medieval times and, during the Renaissance, stood right in the midst of the centre of power, thanks to its illustrious inhabitants, the Medici family. The Medicis not only gave prestige to the area, but also built a series of extraordinary monuments: Palazzo Medici Riccardi, a prototype for every palace in the era, the new Basilica, rebuilt by Filippo Brunelleschi, with later additions by Michelangelo, and the Prince’s Chapel with the tombs of the Medici Grand Dukes.
The Central Market was created in the 19th century when Florence was proclaimed Capital of Italy. The title of a popular story of the time tells us that it immediately became a crown for the market stalls in Via dell’Ariento.
Our story is laid out in three itineraries, each of which starts from a different entrance into the neighbourhood: Via Cavour (The Medici Entrance), Borgo San Lorenzo (The Commercial Entrance) and Piazza dell'Unità d'Italia (The Popular Entrance).
Each of the three itineraries, which are easily finished in a few hours, concentrates on a visit to one of the great monuments (Palazzo Medici, San Lorenzo and the Medici Chapels). Some of our stops are dedicated to lesser-known monuments (the churches of San Giovannino, San Barnaba, San Jacopo in Campo Corbolini and the Cenacolo (or Last Supper) of Fuligno, frescoed by Perugino). We also pause quickly before various palaces, frescoes, busts, plaques, tabernacles, statues, fountains and more besides. We often notice these testimonials of everyday life as we walk by, they intrigue us and make us want to know more.
Perhaps the most innovative aspect of this guide is that it has been created to accompany tourists as they stroll around the streets of the area. It offers them some alternative routes and thus allows them to really discover the city and the extraordinary accomplishments of its inhabitants.
We will soon find that San Lorenzo is an area that has plenty to say for itself and has endless surprises.
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http://www.sanlorenzo.firenze.it