Opera magazine
2020-06-10
Reopenings
Brunelleschi’s dome will be open again on Friday, June 19!
Brunelleschi’s dome will be opening on Friday June 19th! Following the reopening of other monuments of the Duomo Complex - the Baptistery, Giotto’s Bell Tower, and the Museum of the Cathedral - visitors from all over the world can marvel again at this historical and remarkable wonder. After climbing the 463 steps which take you up to the highest spot in Florence, you will be able to admire the broadest view of the Renaissance birthplace city. The compulsory reservation of a time-slot and the 20 euro charge (reduced: 10 euro) grant you a special visit, of 40 people maximum, every hour and fifteen minutes, to ensure all safety and health requirements.
Moreover, the exclusive Tour of the Cathedral Terraces is also available. The visit, at thirty meters high, allows you to take a view of the city while enjoying an exceptional close-up sight of the lantern of the Baptistery, Brunelleschi's Dome and Giotto's Bell Tower. On the way from the North to the South Terrace, you can also admire the interior of the Cathedral from above: a breathtaking view to enjoy marvellous architectural elements, Lorenzo Ghiberti's rose window, and the splendid marble floor! The visit costs 25 euro (reduced: 10 euro). The visit, in accordance to all security and health regulations, will be accompanied by our guides every hour in small groups of 15 people.
The Cathedral can be visited for free by reserving a mandatory time slot. There will be groups of 25 people every 15 minutes. The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore is one of the largest churches in the world, built between the end of the 13th and 16th centuries, it contains masterpieces from the 13th to the 19th century. Thanks to the help of portable distancing devices provided by the staff at the entrance to individuals or group leaders, the visit along the major nave of the church, will guarantee the utmost safety measures related to the current health emergency. The entrance is from ‘Porta del Campanile’ (South side of the Cathedral, next to Giotto's Bell Tower).
It is possible to visit the Baptistery of Saint John at the cost of 10 euros (reduced: 5 euros) with mandatory time slot reservations. The visit will be arranged in groups of 50 people every 15 minutes. The Baptistery of Saint John is the ancient religious and civil center of Dante's Florence. It is a millenary octagonal building, covered with white and green marble, and decorated in its inner vault with a grand golden mosaic. The Baptistery offers visitors a unique visual experience of the historical and artistic origins of the city. The ticket to the Baptistery is combined with that of the Museum Cathedral and it is possible to access only after entering the Museum.
You can also visit Giotto's Bell Tower for 15 euros (reduced: 7 euros) with mandatory time slot reservations arranged in groups of 50 people every hour and fifteen minutes. Access to Giotto’s Bell Tower through the climb of 414 steps will take place in complete safety. The visit offers multiple views, including open spaces with large windows, from which you can enjoy a 360 degrees look of Florence, and a close-up view of the Cathedral and its great dome.
The Cathedral Museum is the essential jewel that completes the visit to Santa Maria del Fiore Monumental Complex. The masterpieces which have decorated the Monuments of Piazza del Duomo for over seven centuries are preserved here. The Museum, renovated in 2015, is conceived as a didactic path to explore the places and artists that gave birth to the Renaissance. Today it is one of the most important museums in the world, both for the value and the number of pieces and for the architectural and technological avant-garde of its rooms and museological furnishings.
The Museum entrance is in front of the head of the Cathedral and consists of a two-story building of about 350 meters. The large and extraordinary room called 'Sala del Paradiso' on the ground floor stands out. This room is truly a unique place and a colossal setting (500 sq m) that recreates the space between the Baptistery and the Cathedral as it was during the Renaissance, decorated with the original sculptures. On one side there is the 1:1 replica of the first facade designed by Arnolfo di Cambio at the beginning of the 14th century, decorated with dozens of marble sculptures arranged on three levels, 17 meters high. Opposite, a major set of works of art in bronze and gold is displayed, creating a unique example in the world of museography. It is the three large doors that adorned the Baptistery: the 'South' one by Andrea Pisano, who was Giotto’s pupil, and the 'North' and the 'East' ones by Lorenzo Ghiberti. The latter is better known as 'the Gate of Paradise' but both are absolute masterpieces of the early Renaissance.
Just in time to catch your breath, you will access the deep tribune where one of the most relevant works of the collection prevails: the great marble Pietà carved by Michelangelo Buonarroti for his tomb and in which the artist portrayed himself in the guise of an age-old Nicodemus.
Behind the Pietà, you can enter the room which takes its name from the wonderful wooden sculpture placed at its center: the Penitent Magdalene, made and painted with extraordinary and striking realism by Donatello.
The walk through the dawn of the Renaissance continues by going up to the first floor, with ‘the Bell Tower Gallery’, where the original marble bas-reliefs and statues made by Andrea Pisano, Donatello, Luca Della Robbia among other artists to decorate Giotto's Bell Tower, are now displayed. From this room, you can marvel at the upper levels of the 1:1 facade replica of the ‘Sala del Paradiso’.
Next is the room dedicated to Brunelleschi and his dome project, with the original models and tools of the ingenious worksite. From here, you can access a large room, which is the very first core of the Museum, where among many masterpieces, reach the two great marble ‘singing galleries’ of the Cathedral made by Donatello and Luca Della Robbia.
Next stop is the visit to the ‘Treasure Room’, where the gilded and enamelled silver Cross and the silver altar of the Baptistery made by the greatest artists of the 14th and15th centuries shine. The ‘Silver Altar’ includes a panel by Verrocchio, Leonardo’s master. Around them, there are many treasures in metals and precious stones, including the collection of rare and refined silk and gold embroidery of the Baptistery parade, designed in the 15th century by Pollaiolo.
The visit finishes at the rooms dedicated to the 19th century facade and its decoration.
The current and provisional visit route guarantees the visitor's health safety, as well as the full enjoyment of the rooms with groups of 50 people every 15 minutes. The reservation is mandatory, and the entrance fee is 10 euros (reduced: 5 euros). The ticket to the Museum Cathedral is combined with that of the Baptistery. The first access time slot refers to the Museum.
