Walking around Florence: guided tour of the Oltrarno area

I have lived in this historic district of Florence for more than 10 years, and I am proud to offer you a guided tour of the Oltrarno. Having a real Florentine as a guide can be an opportunity to better “breathe” the real daily life of the inhabitants of this neighborhood, and to discover places less frequented by tourists. In Florence, all the typical places in the historic center are well known. But not everyone knows about the neighborhoods of Santo Spirito and San Frediano, a more hidden but no less important part of the city, located across the Arno River (from Piazza del Duomo). In Florence, all the traditional places in the historic center are well known. But not everyone knows about the neighborhoods of Santo Spirito and San Frediano, a more hidden but no less important part of the city, located across the Arno River (from Piazza del Duomo).

The stores and antique dealers are numerous: the stores are alive.

Together, throughout the guided tour, we will be able to see the artisans at work and learn about the ancient technique of Florentine commesso and the making of marbled paper. Santo Spirito Square is the beating heart of the neighborhood. The church’s bare and harmonious facade is the emblem of the neighborhood. Every morning, there is a small market on the square, and every other Sunday, the flea market or organic market. In the evening, all kinds of cafes, trattorias, and pizzerias become gathering places for Florentines.

Pitti Palace is located in this same area. 

The construction of this palace ushered in a new era for the originally poor and working-class Oltrarno. The palace houses several museums: the most famous, the Palatina Gallery, holds masterpieces by the most illustrious Italian (Raphael, Caravaggio, Titian, etc.) and foreign (Van Dick, Rubens, Murillo, etc.) artists, arranged in sumptuous salons. The Pitti Palace is located at the foot of Boboli Hill, where the Medici family wanted a splendid garden covering an area of about 45,000 square meters (access to the Boboli Garden against a fee). The Oltrarno route is the ideal guided tour for those who want to savor the typical Florentine atmosphere, and breathe the air of a bygone era, without giving up a very interesting artistic immersion!

Guided Tour of Santo Spirito’s Church

The Augustinian Church of Santo Spirito is another masterpiece of the neighborhood. Admission to the church is free off at certain times and it is possible to attend mass every day. Architect Filippo Brunelleschi took up the essential lines of San Lorenzo here, creating, architecturally, a much more rigorous and coherent building with its theoretical principles. It is one of the purest works of the early Renaissance. The works on the church continued until 1487 (after Brunelleschi died in 1446) and its initial design was modified by his successors. The facade remained unfinished until the 18th century. But this new bare facade with harmonious forms still gives charm to the outside of the church, and character to the square in front. Inside the church a wooden “Christ on the Cross ” was executed by a young Michelangelo (probably only 18 years old). According to some sources, Michelangelo carved a Crucifix for the prior of Santo Spirito to thank him for allowing him to study anatomy and practice dissection at the Augustinian convent. The gracefully shaped Christ is depicted in a spiral position that was often copied later. The work was restored in 2000. Currently displayed in the church sacristy, it is possible to visit it (ticket 7 euros).
Santo Spirito Square is lined with typical cafes and trattorias with outdoor dehors. The place is nice for a simple break (a Italian coffee) or a good meal at noon or on summer evenings. The calm of the daytime square becomes a lively place from 6 to 7 pm when the locals meet for a Florentine-style aperitivo. Also, a must in this popular Florentine neighborhood is a visit to the church of Santa Maria del Carmine, whose exceptional interest, more than in the church itself, lies in the Brancacci Chapel, miraculously saved from the flames in 1771. Masolino and Masaccio had produced a cycle of frescoes there, the impact of which was such that it influenced most Renaissance artists and which today is considered one of the highest expressions of Italian painting.