After an afternoon in Pisa, it was back to Firenze for still more Museums. It was another early morning line, this time to get into the Galleria dell Accademia. Practically the only thing on exhibit here is the ironically giant stature of David. Entering the main hall, lined on each side with the far less known, and not completed slaves, also by Michelangelo, my eyes were drawn immediately to the far end. There stands the iconic work completed five hundred years ago. The work does not disappoint, the details of muscle and vein on the legs and arms, the large curled fingers of his lowered hand, all of it striking and fine. The statue itself is surrounded by a protective plexi-glass fence, this provided after the statue was attack and its toes damaged by a man with a hammer, a scenario not unlike that which happened to another work of Michelangelo, the Pieta, at the Vatican. The rest of the museum comprises of paintings, a plaster cast of the Rape of the Sabine Women original we had already seen outside the Uffizi, and one impressive room full of plaster casts of various sculptures. The casts are crammed into every niche, and fill the center of the room, leaving only a narrow route for tourists to explore. Also during out visit, there was on exhibit Marvels of sound Musical Instruments of the Italian Baroque (Meraviglie sonore Strumenti musicali del Barocco Italiano) which contained, among other interesting, highly ornamented pieces, a violin by Stradivari, a real surprise.
From the Galleria, it was on to the Museo Archeologico. This museum houses older works of art, including several Etruscan pieces. One of the most interesting of these is the empty eyed bronze Chimera. The museum as a whole has a somewhat abandoned feel. We saw no one else visiting while we were there, there were some construction areas seemingly abandoned partway through, and the room with the mummies didn't even have the lights on.
Chimera
Hittite Chariot
Egyptian Items
Bes
After that, we visited another of Firenze's well known museums, the Bargello. Here on display are several sculptures by Michelangelo. At the top of the stairs in the courtyard rest a collection of bronze birds by Giambologna, the most interesting to me being that of a turkey, done in 1567, when the birds odd appearance was still relatively novel.
In a nearby room, Donatello gets his due, where several of his works are on display. Of the many pieces, the bronze David was by far the most interesting, because not only is it large and well made, but at the time of our visit, it was under restoration. For many pieces, restoration means being removed from exhibit and being replaced by a cardboard cut-out if it's recognizable enough, or merely a piece of paper printed with words that proclaim "Under Restoration" of something like. Donatello's David, however, underwent its restoration under the full view of visitors, in the very room where it usually resides. Laying upon his operating table, surrounded by a barrier that houses computers and technicians alike, David did not look entirely comfortable. Perhaps because we were able to better peer into his face, or examine the top of his head, but I suspect it was more to do with our ability to see into his very soul, where his soles ought to have been. For, as I assume is the case with all large bronzes, David is hollow, and he hasn't got a bottom any more than a vase has got a top.
From the Galleria, it was on to the Museo Archeologico. This museum houses older works of art, including several Etruscan pieces. One of the most interesting of these is the empty eyed bronze Chimera. The museum as a whole has a somewhat abandoned feel. We saw no one else visiting while we were there, there were some construction areas seemingly abandoned partway through, and the room with the mummies didn't even have the lights on.
Chimera
Hittite Chariot
Egyptian Items
Bes
After that, we visited another of Firenze's well known museums, the Bargello. Here on display are several sculptures by Michelangelo. At the top of the stairs in the courtyard rest a collection of bronze birds by Giambologna, the most interesting to me being that of a turkey, done in 1567, when the birds odd appearance was still relatively novel.
In a nearby room, Donatello gets his due, where several of his works are on display. Of the many pieces, the bronze David was by far the most interesting, because not only is it large and well made, but at the time of our visit, it was under restoration. For many pieces, restoration means being removed from exhibit and being replaced by a cardboard cut-out if it's recognizable enough, or merely a piece of paper printed with words that proclaim "Under Restoration" of something like. Donatello's David, however, underwent its restoration under the full view of visitors, in the very room where it usually resides. Laying upon his operating table, surrounded by a barrier that houses computers and technicians alike, David did not look entirely comfortable. Perhaps because we were able to better peer into his face, or examine the top of his head, but I suspect it was more to do with our ability to see into his very soul, where his soles ought to have been. For, as I assume is the case with all large bronzes, David is hollow, and he hasn't got a bottom any more than a vase has got a top.
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