Giotto's Tower in Florence

One of the most famous sights of Florence is the Giotto tower. Pictures of this bell tower are decorated with postcards, posters, T-shirts, mugs and other souvenir products with views of an ancient Italian city. The tower played an important role in the life of medieval Florence. From the very beginning it was supposed to serve as a symbol of greatness, military power and independence of the city. In this article we will talk about the long construction of the bell tower. The attraction is one of the first places in the must-see list in Florence. Many tourists do not know where to look for the tower of Giotto. Meanwhile, it serves as the bell tower of the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore.

The importance of the Campanile for Florence

In order to understand the role of the bell tower in the life of the medieval Italian city, we need to make a short digression into the history. At the turn of the XIII-XIV centuries, serious civil wars between Guelphs and Gibbelins raged in Italy. The former advocated the strengthening of papal power, and the latter advocated the influence of the emperor. The victory of Guelphs led to the dominance of the Roman Curia. The houses of the towers of the Ghibelin family were hidden, their owners were executed or sent into exile.

In order to show his Catholicism before the ubiquitous Inquisition, the city authorities began to erect high bell towers of the Gothic cathedrals. The "Falling" Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of them. Florence, which has long competed with Siena in the aspect of the one whose campaign was higher, wanted at any cost to erect the highest bell tower from its cathedral. So the tower of Giotto appeared. The city decided not to stand up for the price and hire for the construction of the most fashionable and, accordingly, expensive master. The document of that time reads: "The Campanila should glorify the city, and this can be done only if the works are managed by a famous master ... There is not a man more gifted than the Florentine Giotto Bondone around the world."

Construction of the tower

According to the canons of Italian Gothic art, the cathedral, the baptismal room (baptistery) and the bell tower (kriminala) were to be separated from each other. Only two years after the construction of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, in 1298, a pit was dug for the foundation of the tower. Initially, the bell tower was erected together with the cathedral entrusted to the architect Arnolfo di Cambio. However, in 1302, he died, and the construction of the bell tower stopped for a whole thirty years. On July 9, 1334, the bishop of the city solemnly laid the first stone and consecrated the place where the tower was to be built. Giotto began work when the city set him an annual salary of one hundred gold florins - a huge amount at that time. The master, who was then 67, offered the magistrate a fashionable "German" model. He also took into account the achievements of the architect of the cathedral, Arnolfo di Cambio, in order that the campaign would be in harmony with the polychrome church building. Giotto applied a technique called "chiaroscuro", which makes the tower look like it's drawn. The master also developed drawings of ornaments, so-called stories. But in the marble to realize his idea did not have time. He died in 1337, when the tower of Giotto in Florence was erected only to the first tier.

Continuation of construction

It would seem that nothing terrible for the city this loss did not bring. The drawing of the eminent master, all the calculations and sketches of the "stories" of marble, which he intended to place on the walls, were already safely stored in the magistrate. However, the consuls decided to invite the not less eminent architect - Andrea Pisano - to continue the construction. This master was famous for erecting the southern portal of the Baptistery. He worked on the bell tower until 1343 and managed to erect the next, second tier. However, the tower of Giotto at this stage was decorated with high bifors. Although the rest of the master strictly followed the drawings left by Giotto.

In 1347, the whole of Europe was swept by the "black death". And Andrea Pisano died of the plague. The third architect, Francesco Talenti, completed the construction of the bell tower. He reveted it, according to Giotto's plan, with three grades of marble, but also made changes to the original design. After all, a quarter of a century has passed since the beginning of the construction, and the German style has gone out of fashion. According to the plan, a 122-meter bell tower was to be crowned with a square tent "50 cubits" high. In 1359, Talente deliberately refused this idea. That first drawing, which is now stored in the museum of Siena, and campaigned near the cathedral of Florence are very different. But, despite the fact that the two succeeding architects brought many of their ideas to create this wonderful creation of art, the bell tower is still called the "Giotto Tower".

Where is the Campanile

The construction height of 84 meters is difficult not to notice. The whole complex of buildings is located on the Cathedral Square in Florence. This is the church of Santa Maria del Fiore (in translation - "Our Lady in Flowers") and a separate belfry and baptistery of San Giovanni. If you stand facing the main portal of the cathedral, the tower of Giotto is on the right side of it.

Exterior decoration

The beauty of the bell tower is amazing. Despite its monumentality and height, it seems more like a jewelry decoration than a building. The tower is graceful, airy. Floor division and high Gothic windows make it slimmer. The tower of Giotto is faced with three grades of marble: snow-white from Carrara, green from Prato and red from Siena. In the Gothic apertures the twisted columns are skilfully intertwined. Mosaic insets of the Kosmati brothers' work enliven the white-green walls.

Statues and bas-reliefs

It is because of this decoration and famous tower Giotto. Where is the master's panel? Giotto left a lot of developments. Perhaps some of the panels of the first and second tiers belong to his chisel or pupils of his school. Initially, on three sides, the tower of Giotto was decorated with bas-reliefs. Later, some panels created the master Luca Della Robbia. The third tier of the bell tower is decorated with sixteen statues. The originals of Donatello's authorship are moved to the museum, and copies of the wind, sun and rain are provided. Some marble "stories" are attributed to Andrea Pisano.

Observation deck

Refusing the original plan, Talenti, the last architect of the bell tower, did not even suspect that he was doing a great service to many generations of tourists. Due to changes in the project, the Giotto tower in Florence was lower by almost forty meters, but it acquired a viewing platform. Now, having overcome 414 steps, one can admire the panorama of an ancient city, consider in every detail the dome of the cathedral of Brunnelski's work. The entire staircase inside the tower is cut by a large number of windows and, slowly overcoming the steps, you can admire the light, like lace, decoration of the bell tower.

A single entrance to the Campanile costs 6 euros. It is much more profitable to purchase a comprehensive ticket for 10 Є, including a visit to the tower, the dome of the cathedral, the Baptistery of San Giovanni, the crypt of Saint Reparata and the historical museum.