Things to do in Florence and Tuscany

The treausures of the Florence Cathedral

11 dicembre 2015 by Elena

Tomorrow a first  visit to the complex of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence is scheduled. The meeting will be at 3 pm in San Giovanni Square, right in front of the Caffé Scudieri. The visit will last 3 hours, as we are going to enter the crypt dedicated to Santa Reparata, the romanesque Baptistery of Saint John, Santa Maria del Fiore’s and the new museum.

The crypt underneath the duomo is the most ancient thing we will see: it corresponds to the early christian church dedicated to Santa Reparata. The choice of this saint is due to an historical event: on the 8th of October (day traditionally dedicated to this greek saint) 405 the florentine Romans could resist againist the attack of a barbaric population. In order to thank the saint for the help she had given them, the Floretines decided to move the title of cathedral church from the ancient San Lorenzo’s (previuosly consacrated by saint Ambrose) to the new church.

One of the most interesting work on show in the crypt is the mosaic floor, decorated with a number of christian symbols. Beside them you can clearly read the names of those patrons who gave money for making the pavement: they payed for it and, sofar, they wanted to be remembered forever!