A journey through love stories and works of art in Florence, the City of the Lily
The day starts early and we have a mission: to discover the gay-friendly places in Florence. We want to look back at some of the stages of the LGBT movement here in Florence, and in Tuscany, from the Renaissance to the first Pride.
This itinerary will shed new light on the best-known places but will also introduce you to hidden corners that deserve to be uncovered, with the magnifying glass of inclusiveness.
The first stage of our walk starts with a visit to the Basilica of Santissima Annunziata. The austere exterior still hides some traces of the frescoes that once adorned the façade. Once inside, however, any rigidity makes way for baroque sumptuousness. Marble statues, stuccoes and paintings surprise us and fill our eyes with beauty. We go to the Basilica’s mortuary chapel, where the tomb that strikes us most of all is that of Benvenuto Cellini.
The artist who created Perseus with the Head of Medusa, which can be seen in the Loggia dei Lanzi, rests here. His history is closely linked to homosexuality in Renaissance Florence. It is no mystery that, during the Renaissance, Florence was a free place where homosexuals could express their orientation without concern. In the language of the time, the German word for homosexual was indeed Florenzen. The Tuscan city seems to have been a true gay-friendly paradise, or at least it was until the early fifteenth century, when a series of tightening up actions in the social sphere led to the creation of the Ufficiali di Notte (Night Officers), a kind of morality police. Over ten thousand complaints, arrests and cases were brought before the courts. This also included our Benvenuto Cellini, who was accused of sodomy 3 times between 1523 and 1556. The crime: having loved men.
The first stage of our walk starts with a visit to the Basilica of Santissima Annunziata. The austere exterior still hides some traces of the frescoes that once adorned the façade. Once inside, however, any rigidity makes way for baroque sumptuousness. Marble statues, stuccoes and paintings surprise us and fill our eyes with beauty. We go to the Basilica’s mortuary chapel, where the tomb that strikes us most of all is that of Benvenuto Cellini.
The artist who created Perseus with the Head of Medusa, which can be seen in the Loggia dei Lanzi, rests here. His history is closely linked to homosexuality in Renaissance Florence. It is no mystery that, during the Renaissance, Florence was a free place where homosexuals could express their orientation without concern. In the language of the time, the German word for homosexual was indeed Florenzen. The Tuscan city seems to have been a true gay-friendly paradise, or at least it was until the early fifteenth century, when a series of tightening up actions in the social sphere led to the creation of the Ufficiali di Notte (Night Officers), a kind of morality police. Over ten thousand complaints, arrests and cases were brought before the courts. This also included our Benvenuto Cellini, who was accused of sodomy 3 times between 1523 and 1556. The crime: having loved men.
Our walk continues, as we move a few meters further on. Another church, that of San Marco awaits us. It will be the last one of the day. This time, however, we discover a love story that has lasted for more than five hundred years. Once again we are fooled by the façade. The interior is a sumptuous triumph of gold in stark contrast with the rigid lines of the neoclassical exterior. We look admiringly at the works of art displayed in the Basilica and finally find the plaque that speaks of a love. That of Pico della Mirandola and Girolamo Benivieni. Their love story is sealed in the Latin inscription:
Here lies Giovanni Mirandola. The rest is known
by the Tagus, the Ganges and perhaps even the Antipodes.
He died in 1494 and lived for 32 years.
Girolamo Benivieni arranged to be buried in the earth below, so that, after death, the separation of places would not separate the bones of those whose souls, in life, were joined in Love.
He died in 1542 and lived for 89 years and 6 months
The two were lovers; Pico died very young, while Girolamo died 50 years later. But true to his beloved, he kept his promise and had himself buried with him, so that they could be together forever. We leave a flower for the two lovers and head to the Uffizi.
Our walk continues, as we move a few meters further on. Another church, that of San Marco awaits us. It will be the last one of the day. This time, however, we discover a love story that has lasted for more than five hundred years. Once again we are fooled by the façade. The interior is a sumptuous triumph of gold in stark contrast with the rigid lines of the neoclassical exterior. We look admiringly at the works of art displayed in the Basilica and finally find the plaque that speaks of a love. That of Pico della Mirandola and Girolamo Benivieni. Their love story is sealed in the Latin inscription:
Here lies Giovanni Mirandola. The rest is known
by the Tagus, the Ganges and perhaps even the Antipodes.
He died in 1494 and lived for 32 years.
Girolamo Benivieni arranged to be buried in the earth below, so that, after death, the separation of places would not separate the bones of those whose souls, in life, were joined in Love.
He died in 1542 and lived for 89 years and 6 months
The two were lovers; Pico died very young, while Girolamo died 50 years later. But true to his beloved, he kept his promise and had himself buried with him, so that they could be together forever. We leave a flower for the two lovers and head to the Uffizi.
The Uffizi Gallery is one of those experiences you need to have at least once in your lifetime and we know that once we enter, we will be enraptured by the beauty of the works of art. This is not our first visit to the Gallery and, although a visit to Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and Primavera are a must, we head towards room number 38. The statue of the sleeping hermaphrodite is an Imperial-era Roman copy from a Hellenistic original dating back to the second century BC. The son of Hermes and Aphrodite sleeps trapped in a thousand-year slumber. Just outside the Hermaphrodite room, another statue catches our attention. Pan and Daphnis tells the story of the son of the nymph Daphnide and the god Hermes. The scene portrayed by the statue depicts Pan, a god with strong sexual connotations, intent on teaching the art of music to his disciple Daphnis. The statue is also a 2nd-century Roman copy and its erotic tension is tangible.
The Uffizi Gallery is one of those experiences you need to have at least once in your lifetime and we know that once we enter, we will be enraptured by the beauty of the works of art. This is not our first visit to the Gallery and, although a visit to Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and Primavera are a must, we head towards room number 38. The statue of the sleeping hermaphrodite is an Imperial-era Roman copy from a Hellenistic original dating back to the second century BC. The son of Hermes and Aphrodite sleeps trapped in a thousand-year slumber. Just outside the Hermaphrodite room, another statue catches our attention. Pan and Daphnis tells the story of the son of the nymph Daphnide and the god Hermes. The scene portrayed by the statue depicts Pan, a god with strong sexual connotations, intent on teaching the art of music to his disciple Daphnis. The statue is also a 2nd-century Roman copy and its erotic tension is tangible.
We leave the Uffizi Gallery and head for Palazzo Pitti. Here, we spend a few hours visiting the Palace and walking around the Boboli Gardens. Walking through the of the Palazzo’s rooms immediately brings to mind the extent of the history these walls have witnessed. We are reminded of the amorous adventures of Gian Gastone de Medici, the last of the Medici dynasty. Who knows which of Gian Gastone's rooms were frequented by the men he loved, who were from all walks of life. Although he went down in history as a lazy ruler, the last Medici heir was very enlightened. It was he who abolished the laws against prostitutes and Jews, dedicated a solemn funeral to Galileo Galilei and curbed the powers of the church. All these actions laid the groundwork for his successor, Leopold I of Tuscany. The Grand Duke is credited with hastening the triumph of civil rights: it was he who abolished the death penalty and decriminalized homosexuality in 1853.
We leave the Uffizi Gallery and head for Palazzo Pitti. Here, we spend a few hours visiting the Palace and walking around the Boboli Gardens. Walking through the of the Palazzo’s rooms immediately brings to mind the extent of the history these walls have witnessed. We are reminded of the amorous adventures of Gian Gastone de Medici, the last of the Medici dynasty. Who knows which of Gian Gastone's rooms were frequented by the men he loved, who were from all walks of life. Although he went down in history as a lazy ruler, the last Medici heir was very enlightened. It was he who abolished the laws against prostitutes and Jews, dedicated a solemn funeral to Galileo Galilei and curbed the powers of the church. All these actions laid the groundwork for his successor, Leopold I of Tuscany. The Grand Duke is credited with hastening the triumph of civil rights: it was he who abolished the death penalty and decriminalized homosexuality in 1853.
After finishing our tour, we move on to Santa Croce, passing through Piazza della Signoria. Today, Civil Partnerships are celebrated in the Hall of Palazzo Vecchio and it is the place where Gay Pride ends. On our way, we encounter many of the works of street art that fill the center of Florence. Once we reach the small gay street, we decide to stop at one of the bars in Borgo Santa Croce, ending our walk with a spritz and new friends to meet.
At the end of this day in the center of Florence, we realize how much the city's history has shaped present-day Tuscany, one of the most gay-friendly regions in Italy, from the beaches and clubs of Versilia and the history of the first Italian pride, which took place right here in Tuscany, in Pisa.
After finishing our tour, we move on to Santa Croce, passing through Piazza della Signoria. Today, Civil Partnerships are celebrated in the Hall of Palazzo Vecchio and it is the place where Gay Pride ends. On our way, we encounter many of the works of street art that fill the center of Florence. Once we reach the small gay street, we decide to stop at one of the bars in Borgo Santa Croce, ending our walk with a spritz and new friends to meet.
At the end of this day in the center of Florence, we realize how much the city's history has shaped present-day Tuscany, one of the most gay-friendly regions in Italy, from the beaches and clubs of Versilia and the history of the first Italian pride, which took place right here in Tuscany, in Pisa.