No study abroad, or any travel, is complete without an attempt to embrace the culture of the country you are visiting. Italian culture especially is something more rich than meets the eye; their way of savoring life is something that has become lost in our modern American culture. So, why not embrace your inner Italian and get to meet some of your neighbors? Getting to know some of the locals is one of the best ways to immerse yourself in the country and its culture to really provide yourself with a genuine experience. That is exactly what I decided to do…travel five blocks from my apartment to the Santa Croce, and meet some of my neighbors. The Santa Croce may be known as one of Florence’s more breathtaking basilicas, but another attraction within the walls is the collection of tombs of iconic thinkers: the fathers of art, science, and modern political thought. Although the walls and floor of the Santa Croce house the remains dozens of fallen Florentines, three of the most notable people are Michelangelo, Galileo, and Niccolo Machiavelli. But the basilica houses more than their bodies, it houses the legacies and history these men left, making the Santa Croce a monument to not only Italian religion, but also history.
The first notable resident of the Santa Croce is Michelangelo Buonarroti, arguably the most iconic artist in history. Although he was born in Capri, Michelangelo was brought to Florence at young age and received his artistic training and established his fame in the city. His fame flourished during the Renaissance, and many of his most famous works include the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (Vatican City), the David (The Academia located in Florence), and the architecture of Saint Peter’s Basilica (Vatican City). His artistic technique and talent is one which great lead the way to the works of future artists and shaped the artistic eras and tends which followed. He gained so much fame through his lifetime, that Pope Pius IV ordered to bury Buonarroti in Rome, his city of death. Yet, the Florentines were so adamant that the artist should be laid to rest in his hometown, that with the assistance of Lionardo Buonarroti (Michaelangelo’s nephew) they kidnapped his body from Rome and buried him in the Santa Croce. The tomb itself was designed and constructed from 1567-1574 by several artists in The Academia, it features three marble statues which are placed at the base of the coffin to personify Michelangelo’s main artistic contributions: Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. It is by far the grandest of the tombs located in the Santa Croce, for one of the most notable historical Florentines.
The second Florentine native and resident is Galileo Galilei, who also has an ornate tomb to honor his memory and scientific contributions. Galileo was a Florentine mathematician, philosopher, and physicist whose contributions and discoveries included construction of one of the first modern telescopes in 1609 and support of the Copernican Theory (which states that solar system rotates around the Sun), and multiple accusations of heresy due to these findings. It is because of Galileo’s formerly “controversial” claims and discoveries that the old theories of Aristotle were debunked and we come to know the truth about our solar system and modern physics. The tomb of Galileo located at the Santa Croce was erected in 1737 with contributions from multiple artists. The design of the tomb was created by Giulio Foggini and includes a bust of Galileo himself looking towards the heavens (by Giovanni Battista Foggini) and two statues personifying Astronomy (by Vincenzo Foggini), and Geometry (by Girolamo Ticciati). Like Michaelangelo, the Santa Croce was not Galileo’s original resting place. The Inquisition forbid him from being buried on consecrated ground in 1642, but later his patron, Grand Duke Ferdinando II, collected money for a tomb and memorial. Yet, Pope Urban VIII forbid for the memorial to be built due to Galileo’s tangled relationship with the church due to his controversial discoveries and claims, and buried Galileo in an unmarked grave in the corner of the Santa Croce.
Our last neighbor is Niccolo Machiavelli, one of the great thinkers responsible for modern political theory. He is best known for his book, “The Prince” and famous quote, “it is better to be feared than loved.” He also spent 14 years as an Italian diplomat during the Medici family exile. During his time as a diplomat of the Florentine Republic, he gained a reputation of deviousness and shamelessness. He attempted to organize a militia of Florentines to combat the return of the Medici family only to be unsuccessful. Once the Medici’s came to power once again in 1512, Machiavelli was captured, tortured, jailed, and banished from an active political life until his death in a small village outside Florence in 1527. While his eternal resting place is in the Santa Croce, he ironically was banned from the basilica during the last years of his life. Machavelli died in 1527, but his tomb was not built until 1787. Although his theories were “brutally pragmatic” his practices and works were that which influenced the Medici’s and modern Western political thought. Telling of his overwhelming contributions, the tomb built by Spinazzo and has the inscription, “Tanto nomini nullum par eulogium,” or “No elegy is equal to such a name” at the base.
Florence was arguably the epicenter of some of the greatest artistic, scientific, and political advancements in early history. Their creation and discoveries may be partly what put Florence on your “places to visit” list. What better way to appreciate the richness of this history than visiting these iconic thinkers and honoring them? It is not only their bodies which lie in the walls of the Santa Croce, but their legacies that they wove into our history books. How many times have we read about these iconic individuals? And now they are your neighbors as you spend your time in Florence. Take the time to stop and get to know some of the locals during your stay in Florence, you never know who you are going to meet.