Florence - Piazzale Michelangelo

Florence's finest viewpoint, 104 m/341ft above sea level, is named after Michelangelo, an artist who did not always get the best of treatment from the people of Florence. It was designed by Giuseppe Poggi and laid out between 1865 and 1870. The statues in the center of the square are bronze copies of Michelangelo's famous "David" and the four "Times of the Day" for the Medici tombs in the New Sacristy of San Lorenzo.

Florence's most important sights can easily be picked out and identified from the Piazzale Michelangelo. The Palazzo Vecchio, the city's tallest building, can be recognized by its tower topped by a belfry. Close by is the battlemented, smaller tower of the Bargello. Nearby is the more slender spire of the Badia Fiorentina. By the river can be seen the Franciscan church of Santa Croce, overlooking the Arno. In the opposite direction, well in the background near the station, the church tower and spire of Santa Maria Novella are visible. But the massive building that dominates the cityscape is the Cathedral, the Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore, with its imposing dome and richly decorated belfry. To the left of the Cathedral the smaller white roof is the Baptistery and the red dome is the New Sacristy of San Lorenzo.