Medici's Florence

Was Uffizi richer than Medici?

Have you been to Florence (Italy)? It is really annoying not to see Medci's name at prominent places. Florence's most popular spot is not named after him. You have to wait for four hours in line to get into the museum named after Uffizi. Who was Uffizi? Was he richer than Medici? Yes!

The word Medici is well known to us because the Medici family supported many Renaissance artists. It is also well known that Florence was their home base for business operations. If this is the case, why could we not see the trace of this important chapter in history?

Historians say the Medici family was the first one to set up an empire with money, while all before them did with military forces. Based in Florence, the Medicis controlled the financial network of the entire Western Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Indeed, the twin Uffizi buildings used to serve as the World Trade Center of their time. Those two "Uffizi" building used to be Medici's "Office" buildings. Right! "Uffizi" sounds like "office."

These twin buildings were and still are separated by a street called the Uffizi Courtyard. Here are the photos of the Courtyard taken from the fourth and second floors of western building.

If you see those two buildings , you will note that the Medici family was much richer than you had thought. These days, these office buildings house the family's art collections, and thus the museum. Click here for the first corridor of the Uffizi (photo courtesy of Bonesch edizioni "Il Turismo"). If you cannot go to Florence to visit these buildings, visit the Uffizi webpage.

In Europe, during 15th and 16th centuries, one has to marry a girl from the Medici family to be somebody. Two French kings imported two Medici girls from Italy for their brides. One of those girls was interested in building the city of Paris. She was interested in building the widest street in the world, and this street in known these days as des Champs Elysees. She also built the Palais du Luxembourg and it garden known today as the Jardin du Luxembourg. Without those items, Paris would be a completely different city.

The other Medici girl was interested in an art of combining music and dance. This became the origin of French ballet. After Louis XIV died, Peter the Great of Russia visited France and started importing French culture to Russia. Russians were particularly interested in this new form of music-and-dance, because they are were and still are music-loving and picture-loving people. This became the origin of Russian ballet.

Michelangelo was supported by the Medicis. Italians say that Michelangelo is more valuable to Italy than Shakespeare is to England. You can read Shakespeare anywhere in the world and Englishmen cannot make money on his books. However, you have to come to Italy and spend money to see the artworks of Michelangelo. The Medici family therefore made a very wise investment, and they certainly knew how to make money.

Michelangelo's original statue of David is housed in the
Galleria dell Academia.
Donatello's David in the
Bagegllo Museum, People's Palace, originally a prison building.

The Medici family supported another important person in history. His name was

Galileo Galilei. Thanks to the Medicis, Galileo was not simply burnt, and was able to put up a valiant fight against the Vatican.
Galileo's Remains are entombed in the Church of St. Crosse.
Church of St. Croce one of the many churches in Florence. Each church building is its own artwork.

There are many other museums in Florence, in addition to the Uffizi and the Academia. In fact, the entire city is a huge museum. Let us see some photos of this unique city.

Cathedral of St. Maria del Fiore seem from the main street.
Outside Wall.
Image of Jesus high inside wall.
Ceiling of the Dome.
Neptune admired by a man and also by a woman.
More Sculptures in this roofless museum.
Arno River. Natural Beauty.

Enough for stone structures. Let us now look at some people.

Lunch Alone, but surrounded by stone walls. I could appreciate God's artworks: men and women from all parts of the world.
Interesting People on the street.
Russian Friends. Oh Yes. I know them, and they knew me. It is always a pleasure to meet the friends unexpectedly. It happens in Florence.
Beautiful Heart. This hotel manager wanted me to have a hearty breakfast. She came from Germany, and it is German farmers' tradition to fill up the stomachs before going to the fields.
American Vacationers. It is always fun to meet Americans in Europe. These people came from the area not far from my house.
Italians. I was lucky enough to meet these Italian ladies at a restaurant called "Il Latini." It is very difficult to meet Italians in Florence.

In addition to the Medici dynasty, Florence served as a power base of Galileo Galilei. Click here for Galileo's Florence.

We thank Bonechi Edizioni "Il Turismo" for allowing us for the images of the Uffizi Courtyard and the first corridor.