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8 Renaissance Masterpieces To See in Florence That Aren’t "David"

Florence has a wealth of High Renaissance masterpieces. But after admiring Michelangelo's “David,” what comes next?

Woman looks out over Florence, Italy
Hi, I'm Gianmaria!

Gianmaria Franchini is a writer based in Oakland, CA who makes his life between California and Italy. He’s a Senior Writer with Viator, and the in-house San Francisco expert.

The birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence has artistic and architectural masterpieces at nearly every turn. Some, such as Michelangelo’s Renaissance statue of David in the Galleria dell'Accademia, are so famous they hardly need introductions. Others, such as Domenico del Ghirlandaio’s frescoes in the Sassetti Chapel, are hidden gems in Florence's Renaissance art and architecture scene.

If you're an art lover looking to do a deep dive into Florence's oil paintings, sculptures by Renaissance artists, and some of the city's best buildings from the 15th century, we've put together a little Florence art and architecture tour for you. To start, behold David in his glory—it is undoubtedly the must-see work of Renaissance art in Florence. But don’t miss these other masterpieces in the city, from lesser-known Renaissance artworks in Florence to skyline-defining structures, that are also well worth your time.

1. “The Birth of Venus”

People take photos of “The Birth of Venus” at The Ufizzi Galleries (Gallerie degli Ufizzi) in Florence.
The Birth of Venus is a Renaissance classic.Photo Credit: Hunter Bliss Images / Shutterstock

Botticelli's timeless painting captures the goddess emerging from the sea.

Painted in the 1480s, Sandro Botticelli's The Birth of Venus shows the newly-born (and fully-grown) Roman goddess Venus emerging from the sea. Covering herself in forced modesty, she’s carried by seafoam and Zephyr-blown winds towards the island of Cythera on a seashell.

One of the most famous Renaissance-era works of art, it pairs with the artist's lesser-known Primavera, also in the Ufizzi. While you’re there, swing by Titian’s Venus of Urbino, too, which contrasts Botticelli’s modesty with eroticism.

2. Brunelleschi’s Dome

The ornate dome of Brunelleschi’s Duomo in Florence.
The ornate dome of Florence's Duomo is unmissable.Photo Credit: Luca Grandinetti / Shutterstock

A marvel of Renaissance engineering.

In the early 15th century, Filippo Brunelleschi laid out designs to build the dome of Florence’s cathedral without traditional supporting structures, a feat of engineering not accomplished since antiquity. He accomplished this by building two domes, one inside the other. The masonry dome was the largest in the world when it was completed in 1436 and over 500 years later still holds the title today of the largest brick-and-mortar dome. His vision “kicked off” the architectural Renaissance, and inspired cathedral domes around the world, from Milan and the US Capitol.

Don't miss the dome’s frescoes depicting The Last Judgement. And be sure to climb a narrow passageway to the lantern (the small tower atop the dome) for a birdseye view of the Piazza del Duomo and a panoramic view of the city beyond.

3. “The Story of Saint Francis of Assisi”

The frescoes of Ghirlandaio in Florence.
The frescoes by Ghirlandaio are outstanding examples of Florentine Renaissance art.Photo Credit: Anna Pakutina / Shutterstock

Masterful artworks in the Basilica di Santa Trinita capture devotion and humility.

The Story of Saint Francis of Assisi by Domenico Ghirlandaio extends over three walls of the Sassetti Chapel. One of the city’s most famous Renaissance painters, Ghirlandaio transposed traditional story elements from Francis’ life with Florentine settings and people in six different scenes. The series of 15th-century frescoes is highly regarded for its realism, which is unmatched in works by Ghirlandaio's contemporaries.

In the second scene, called The Confirmation of the Rule, the Pope receives Saint Francis in Florence instead of Rome, with Lorenzo de’ Medici and his family in attendance. (Keep in mind that Lorenzo was born more than 200 years after the saint’s death.)

4. “The Gates of Paradise”

The exterior of the Gates of Paradise on the Florence Baptistery in Italy.
Florence's replica Gates of Paradise on the Florence Baptistery.Photo Credit: Artyart / Shutterstock

Gilded bronze doors showcase an era of artistic brilliance and cultural renaissance.

Some say that the Renaissance began when merchants from the city of Florence commissioned Lorenzo Ghiberti to design new bronze doors for the local baptistery in 1425. Ghiberti labored for nearly 30 years, adorning the doors, now known as The Gates of Paradise, with 10 scenes from the Old Testament in gold-leaf reliefs, demonstrating a new mastery of linear perspective.

The original doors can be seen in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo while replicas adorn the entrance to the baptistery across the street from the Florence Duomo.

5. The Medici Chapels

The ornate exterior of the tomb of Lorenzo II de Medici in Florence.
Dawn and "Dusk" adorn the tomb of Lorenzo II de Medici.Photo Credit: D.Bond / Shutterstock

Michelangelo's masterpieces adorn this mausoleum, a testament to artistic and cultural legacy.

David gets all the glory, but Michelangelo's 16th-century sculptures in the Medici Chapels are worth a visit for art lovers. His figures, the personifications of Dawn, Day, Dusk, and Night, lay in sensuous poses atop burial tombs designed for the Medici family.

In 1530, during a power conflict between the Florentines and the ruling Medicis, Michelangelo hid in a secret room underneath the chapel and sketched graffiti to pass the time until tensions cooled. The secret room with priceless drawings is sometimes open to the public.

6. “The Battle of San Romano”

Chequered hallways in Florence's Uffizi Galleries, with red walls.
Florence's Uffizi Galleries are among the best in the world.Photo Credit: T photography / Shutterstock

Known for innovative use of geometric precision and vivid color, Uccello's art transcends time with artistic brilliance.

Paolo Uccello’s The Battle of San Romano is most likely one of three 15th-century paintings (called a “triptych”) and depicts the events of a Tuscan turf war fought between Florence and Siena fought over control of the port of Lucca, among other things.

What has become widely accepted as the center panel, called Niccolò Mauruzi da Tolentino unseats Bernardino della Carda, Uccello painted the battle in a dreamy perspective and currently sits in the Uffizi Gallery. (The first and third paintings in the series are located in London and Paris.)

7. Ponte Santa Trinita

A runner at Golden Hour runs on the Ponte Santa Trinita bridge crossing Florence's central river.
A runner soaks up Golden Hour on the Ponte Santa Trinita.Photo Credit: Andrea Bonfanti / Shutterstock

A symbol of Renaissance engineering, it reflects the era’s architectural grace.

While the medieval Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio) is Florence’s most famous, the Renaissance-built Ponte Santa Trinita—with its three oval-shaped arches over the Arno River—is the most graceful.

During World War II, German troops destroyed the original stone bridge, which had already replaced a 5-arched wooden version from the 13th century. During the reconstruction of war-damaged Italy, the Renaissance-era stone bridge was rebuilt in 1958 using archival plans and stones recovered from the riverbed.

8. Laurentian Medici Library (Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana)

A green inner courtyard of the golden-stoned Laurentian Medici Library (Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana) in Florence.
Don't miss this Michelangelo-designed library in Florence.Photo Credit: Vava Vladimir Jovanovic / Shutterstock

A beacon of Renaissance learning, beauty, and culture.

Michelangelo designed, what some call revolutionary, the Laurentian Medici Library in the 15th century. It holds, perhaps the most important collection of rare books in Italy, collected by Cosimo (the Elder) and Lorenzo (the Magnificent) Medici, and include manuscripts by Boccaccio, Dante, and Virgil.

Located inside the Basilica of San Lorenzo (Basilica di San Lorenzo), the library features late-Renaissance architecture. Here you’ll see an extraordinary and fantastical staircase that mixes disparate architectural styles that seem to magically work together. While most of the building is open to the public, a visit to the reading room (accessible via Michaelangelo’s high-Renaissance-designed stairs)—a light-filled sight to behold—requires reservations.

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