Firenze

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, or the duomo of Florence, stands as a fascinating object to gaze at. Quite large, it is yet composed almost entirely of beautifully intricate artwork. Even the architects' models and drawings — housed in the Museo dell'Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore — must have taken inordinate amounts of time and skill. The amount of effort that the structure must have required, over its years of construction, bears witness to the dedication of those involved in it.

Some of the tools used in construction, or replicas of them, are displayed in the museum, as well as in a room adjoining the descending passageway of the cupola of the duomo. According to the museum, new tools and building techniques were invented specifically for its construction, not because such a dome had never previously been built, but because the ancient-Roman methods and devices originally used to build one had been forgotten by the medieval centuries.

The museum of the duomo houses, besides those objects already mentioned, a number of paintings of the cathedral as well as several pieces taken from the cathedral itself, at least some of which have been replaced by either permanent or temporary replicas. Some of these will remain indefinitely in the museum or some other indoor situation, while others have been recently restored and will soon be returned to their places within the cathedral. The museum displays these pieces of art from the duomo at closer range, and the intricacy of each piece and of the whole becomes that much more astonishing.

The outer duomo surface boasts many statues. Among these are the Sybils, which stand in a row on the Campanile, or bell tower, which stands next to the cathedral. These figures refer to the pagan prophetesses of Ancient Rome, who were believed to have foretelling abilities. According to the information in the museum, their presence was supposed to represent the connection between diverse religions, specifically that between the Jewish and Christian faiths and the historically Hebrew and Gentile peoples. The Sybils worked among the pagan Roman people, among whom Christianity eventually spread from the Jews.