Dante, the poet, the politician, a great Florentine with Florence in his heart. 700 years have passed since Dante's death, and to celebrate it we will go to the discovery of the places, of his Florence, of the characters who lived with him that part of history and of his most famous work, the Comedy. The genius of his work, later called "Divine," was defined as such not only because of the high quality of his poetry, but especially because of the timeless theme of a man on his journey before and after death.
Traitor, fugitive, then Supreme Poet and Divine, as Boccaccio defined him. We will get to know him through the monuments of his Florence, we will discover where he was born, the church where he married Gemma Donati, where he saw for the first time Beatrice, his inspiring muse who will guide him on his journey through Paradise. We will also reconstruct together that part of the city that has now disappeared, when the buildings were made of wood and stone, there were many small churches, shops and numerous towers, strongholds of the most powerful families.
Dante was exiled precisely by his fellow citizens, when in Florence it was the time of the great artists such as Cimabue, Giotto and Arnolfo di Cambio, who would revolutionize his city forever. There were construction sites everywhere, working on the basilica of Santa Croce, the government building (later the Palazzo della Signoria), the new walls and the construction of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, a construction site that Dante loved to watch while sitting on what is said to have been Dante's stone, which is still on the side of the square today.
Many great artists drew inspiration from the Divine Comedy. But Dante himself was surely inspired by the mosaic with Lucifer devouring sinners in the dome of the Baptistery. Those were the times of fierce infighting, and Dante, once he had reached the peak of his political career, was accused by his opponents of illicit gains and treason.
Perhaps generic accusations, but that condemned him to a very expensive punishment, having to leave Florence, and with her his political role, his family and the confiscation of all assets. His language is still our language: perhaps we don't always notice how many expressions from Dante we still use today: "Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch'intrate", "Fatti non foste a viver come bruti" "Non mi tange", "Stai fresco"...
In 1865 Florence, having become the capital of Italy, celebrated the 6th centenary of the supreme poet's birth. With the occasion, in the historical centre, the "Dante's tombstones" were placed, which during our route, will illustrate the Comedy. In the same period was also created the gigantic and severe statue at the side of S.Croce, the medieval basilica where there are the tombs of the greats of the past, such as Galileo, Michelangelo, Machiavelli and the monument dedicated to Dante, with the great poet and the allegory of poetry crying for his death.
The Florentines wanted to be able to celebrate him, but had to settle for an empty monument, because once exiled, Dante would never return to his beloved city, not even after his death, not even after Florence's attempt to get his remains back. In the tour there are no entrance fees, but when booking you can customize the tour according to your needs and interests.
Some suggestions to enrich your visit:
Basilica of the Holy Cross
Dante's House Museum
Baptistery of San Giovanni
Contact me to create a personalized itinerary together that meets your interests and needs.
