Palazzo Vecchio

I put up the other statues found in Piazza Signoria, outside the Palazzo the other day - but I forgot Cellini's Perseus (1554)

The Salone dei Cinquecento - from the second floor.

The Salone dei Cinquecentro - as seen from the edge of that red carpet, looking up to where the first pic was taken.

Pope Leo X has pride of place on the raised stage like area - there are 4 other statues depicting important members of the Medici family, including Pope Clement VII

This is Michelangelo's Genius of Victory

Well it has been a hot couple of days - and the apartment is generally OK, usually the closing of the front window is sufficient to keep most of the really bad heat out. The temperature tends to peak around 3-4pm, so by 5ish it is starting to cool. We stayed at home in the morning, slept a bit later and I relaxed a bit after over a week of frantic assignment work.

The lower wall fresco in the state room (office) of Cosimo 

One of the ceiling sections in Lorenzo the Magnificent's room - thats him depicted in the centre sitting on the chair

One view of the room that was Pope Leo X's

From another corner

Late this afternoon we headed out to the Palazzo Vecchio, the seat of Florentine government even to this day - half of the building houses the Mayor's offices and reception rooms etc. It was built during the republican period around 1300 and was then taken over by Cosimo I Medici in the 16th century and fully renovated! It is basically a shrine in art to the Medici's as well as covering most of the major Roman myths including Saturn Jupiter, Calliope, Sabines, Penelope, Hercules, Minerva, Opis, Ceres and the Elements. It was half government with a variety of state rooms and half family home. A number of the rooms had pieces of furniture still in them. Most of the artwork was completed by Vasari, or his contingent of workers, but there are a number of other pieces also in there.

Staircase from first floor to second

One part of a wall fresco in the 'Room of the Elements". Guess which element this is!

View from 'The terrace of Saturn'

Other view from 'Terrace of Saturn'

There were a number of these ornate desks in several of the rooms - each one slightly different

The painting over the altar in the private chapel of  Eleonora of Toledo (Austrian married to Cosimo). She was wealthy in her own right and in charge of a number things in Florence, as well as filling in for Cosimo when he was away and running a house! No wonder she needed a space for some 'quiet time'!

Wardrobe in Eleonora's rooms

A sink with basins in Eleonora's rooms. There were many fountains as well, a tribute to the new Aquaduct system that had been put in by Cosimo throughout the city.

Madonna col Bambino e un angelo by Scuolo Del Botticelli hanging in Eleonora's rooms

Chapel of the Priors - the seating end - with St Bernard

The altar in the Chapel of the Priors

part of ceiling in the Chapel

One section of wall in the Audience Chamber of the Priors

One wall in the 'Hall of the Lilies'. This is the only room that retained its decor from the republican era 

The lilies on the walls where the room gets its name, a section of the ceiling and Donatello's Judith & the Holofernes

View of Duomo out of the window of the Hall of Lilies

View of the Badia Fiorentina

Judith and the Holofernes by Donatello (a better angle)

The Hall of Maps

No Australia of course - but we did find Saudi Arabia! can you see Jeddah?

Dining Room on Mezzanine Level

The Last Supper hanging in the 'Room of the Golden Lilies'.

On the way to the Palazzo we stopped at a shop that makes hand carved wooden toys - Pinocchio is one of the symbols seen here alot - so the boys got to be Pinocchio! On the way home we once again ran into two vehicles that caught the boys eye - the first another little electric car - the second, a BMW moped with a roof!

Jacob Pinocchio

Ethan Pinocchio

Can you seriously call this a car when it only fits one person, has three wheels and is electric - so you have to plug it in to charge it? Isn't it just a giant sized remote control car?

It may be BMW but if its raining your still going to get wet - despite the small roof!