Chiese di Orsanmichele e dei Santi Apostoli

Another week, another unforgettable visit to a couple of churches that the average tourist (or even a native Florentine) would pass by without notice.

This afternoon's itinerary started off with a visit to Chiesa di Orsanmichele, an atypical church nestled on a street (Via Calzaiuoli) full of high-end boutiques. At first glance it looks like a tower of some sort. Originally a small church to San Michele (St. Michael), it was then converted into a grain market in the 13th century which was later destroyed in a fire. The current church was built in its place, and its name comes from Orto di San Michele or "small garden of St. Michael".

It is a unique church foremost for its shape--square rather than the typical T or cross. Then its usage--in the two floors above the church were granaries or grain markets. In fact, many churches doubled as markets with the idea that God would give them abundance. Remnants of the granary can still be seen on the main floor. A hole in the ceiling near the entrance shows where grain could be lowered down, and the small recess in the right wall (pictured right) was where people would bring their empty bags to fill with grain as it was siphoned from up above.

The most beautiful piece is the gothic tabernacle (pictured left). It's exquisite. So is the painting of Mary and Jesus within; and the marble curtain that frames it (fabric was very important in Florence's heyday--the street Calzaiuoli is named because there were many leather and shoemakers situated in that area). 

Then you go through a narrow, windy stairwell to reach the former granary, which is now a museum that houses the original sculptures that graced the church's outdoor walls. Among the sculptors who contributed works were Brunelleschi, Donatello, Ghiberti, and Verrocchio--who I learned was Leonardo da Vinci's teacher!

The top floor has many smaller sculptures and a great 360-degree view of Florence. I could see the Duomo in the distance.

We walked to the outskirts of medieval Florence to find the Chiesa dei Santi Apostoli. I would never have seen it otherwise. It is a Roman-style church said to have been dedicated to Charlemagne and later became the church of the rich Altoviti family (their tombs are still there today). The interior is quite dark but very unique, and it has a shorter nave and almost nonexistent apse. Two of the green marble columns along the nave were taken from the ancient Roman baths nearby, and it still has its original flooring (though it was heavily restored after the Arno flooded the church in the 1960s).

View of the Duomo from Orsanmichele

Chiesa dei Santi Apostoli

Today's word of the day seems a bit random given the holy places I visited: litigare. It means "to argue". I learned this verb in school a few weeks ago but I saw and heard it a lot today. I watched No Reservations with Posh in Italian (in case you're wondering, the Italian title is Sapori e dissapori - not the same meaning!), starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Aaron Eckhart. It didn't mill as much as I thought it would. Low expectations!