Museo dell’Opera del Duomo (The Museum of the Works of the Cathedral, Florence)

Many years ago, on my first visit to Florence, I visited the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo (the museum associated with the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, usually referred to as “the Duomo”). At that time (1996), the museum was a jumble of a space, small and crowded with poorly displayed art and artifacts from the famous cathedral. I was not inspired to return.

Detail from a sculpture by Ticciati, once part of the main altar in the Duomo, now in the redesigned museum entry

 In recent years, the museum has been enlarged and has undergone a top-to-bottom renovation (completed in 2015). On a recent trip to Florence I decided to revisit the museum to see the changes – and my only word is WOW - what a change! 

16th century bust of Mary Magdalene, Giovanni Bandini

The museum is now an amazing space, full of light, open galleries, and fascinating art and artifacts from throughout the cathedral’s history.

The displays are well organized, beautifully presented, and provide good historical context.

Many of the pieces are original, moved from the cathedral itself. These include Ghiberti’s bronze baptistery doors, an evocative Pietà by Michelangelo, a carved wooden Mary Magdalene by Donatello, and portions of a larger-than-life sculpture from what was once a main altar in an earlier version of the cathedral (top photo).

A reproduction of the church facade, lined with statuary, fills the long, high gallery on the ground floor. How wonderful to get a closer look at these examples of statues that are so high up on the actual cathedral’s exterior. The facade can also be enjoyed from a viewing gallery on the floor above, which provides an even closer look at the statues high up on the recreated facade.

Statue gallery

 Across from this wall of statues are the two massive bronze baptistery doors by Ghiberti. I could spend hours looking at the details of the panels that make up these doors. Each panel tells a story in intricate detail.

Detail of panels from the north baptistry doors

Wooden model of the lantern that rises above the cupola

Central to the history of the cathedral is the building of the cupola (dome). Designed by Brunelleschi, it is a marvel of engineering and architecture.

The museum has an area dedicated to its construction that includes models of the dome and the lantern that caps it, a video presentation, and a display of tools used in the dome’s construction.

 Considering that the cupola was built in the 15th century, is this impressive engineering or miracle?

 One of my favorite displays was the reproductions of the stained glass windows.  More than a static display, the dynamic technology brings the windows up close, allowing the brilliant colors and designs to unfold before one’s eyes to be viewed in detail.

Of course a cathedral must have music and  the museum includes beautifully illustrated books of sacred music and two marble choir lofts (actually designed for organs not choirs). One loft was designed by della Robbia and the other by Donatello.  Both are beautiful but quite different in character.

Joyful children play across della Robbia’s sculpted choir loft

Detail from large book of sacred music

To end a visit here, be sure to view the actual dome from the viewing platform on the museum’s top floor.

The redesigned Museo dell’Opera del Duomo is nothing short of marvelous. Kudos to the redesign team - what a gift they have given us.   - Post by JMB

Location:   Piazza del Duomo 9, 50122 Florence, Italy

Hours:  Sunday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.  Closed Mondays and first Tuesday of the month.  Hours subject to change; best to check ahead of time

Cost: an 18 euro ticket allows access to the museum and baptistery .  Several combined museum tickets also area available 

Italian Emigration

As a granddaughter of Italian immigrants, I was intrigued to recently visit a small museum in Lucca dedicated to telling the story of Italian emigration. It was in the late 1800s and early 1900s when the greatest number of Italians left their homeland in search of better lives. The majority – like my grandparents – came from southern Italy. That part of the country was mostly agricultural and impoverished. Italians from the south headed west – to North and South America - and to other parts of Europe as well.

The Museo Paolo Cresci in Lucca tells the story of Italian immigration from 1860 to 1960.

Italian emigration is like that of many other ethnic groups – in their new countries, immigrants largely had to take on jobs involving manual labor. Many traveled across the Atlantic by themselves, with few possessions other than their hopes for a better life. Once settled, they would send money home to help the family left behind.

The Museo Paolo Cresci in Lucca hosts photos and documents from some of those who made the transition. The items on display are taken from some 15,000 photographs and documents that Cresci collected from the families of those who emigrated.

Paolo Cresci collected more than 15,000 photos and documents from the families of Italians who emigrated.

Passports, transportation invoices and guides to new countries are among the items, as are black and white photos that starkly show the strain of the journey on the faces of those traveling. I found myself awed and humbled by their courage. People laden with all their belongings crowded onto ships for the voyage. Once they arrived, those who came to America sent postcards of the Statue of Liberty home to their families; it is fascinating to read the ones on display at the museum.

Family photos taken in the new country

The photos taken of these Italians after they resettled resemble many of my family’s old photos: children dressed for their First Holy Communion, families standing in their own homes. This time, the faces show pride for having “made it.” Wandering around the museum gave me time to think about what my forefathers sacrificed for their families. And it made me wish I had asked a lot more questions about the “old country” when I had the chance. I’m grateful that Lucca has this museum to help me find some answers.

The ceiling of Museo Paolo Cresci

The Museo Paolo Cresci looks at Italian emigration from 1860 to 1960 and admission is free. The building that houses the museum is worth a look all its own: it is a former chapel with a beautifully frescoed ceiling.

-post by JG

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Florence - A City of Science As Well As Art

It’s not hard to fall in love with Italian men, especially when they are as intelligent and forward-thinking as Galileo Galilei. I have been enamored with Galileo for years – ever since someone described him to me as a polymath. A polymath (a person with significant knowledge of several subjects)! What’s not to love? The man was a genius! There is a great tribute to him - and to science in general - at the Museo Galileo in Florence.

A bust of Galileo in the Florence museum that bears his name.

The Museo Galileo, just behind the Uffizi Gallery, is a repository of scientific instruments ranging from telescopes to thermometers and covering topics ranging from The Science of Equilibrium to The Science of Warfare. The museum says it is “heir to a tradition of five centuries of scientific collecting” and credits the Medici and Lorraine families of Tuscany with emphasizing the importance of such collecting. Indeed, I felt like I was in a toy store for scientists as I wandered the rooms of the museum.

An astrolabe from the 16th century, used to measure the inclined position in the sky of a celestial body.

An astrolabe from the 16th century and a huge armillary sphere are just two of the items on display that help explain how Galileo and other astronomers from centuries ago looked at the heavens.

The giant armillary sphere at the Museo Galileo.

There is plenty of information about Galileo, too. And for the non-squeamish, there is a display of his right-hand index finger and thumb, and one of his teeth. It is said that admirers of the man removed the digits and tooth, as well as a vertebra, from his body as it was being transferred from storage to a tomb in Santa Croce Basilica.

Several telescopes at the Museo Galileo.

Even for visitors who aren’t scientifically inclined, seeing the intricacy of the instruments used so many years ago is fascinating, as is reading about the practical applications of various scientific discoveries.                                                   -post by JG

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