The Piazza d'Ognissanti

The Piazza d'Ognissanti lies on the banks of the Arno. You can reach it from the Duomo (cathedral) by taking Via de' Pecori, continuing along its extension Via degli Agli, then left onto Via de' Tornabuoni until you reach the river. Then turn right onto Lungarno Corsini and continue along the Arno on Via Amerigo Vespucci.

On the square you will discover the Palazzo Lenzi, which houses the honorary consulate of France.

In the center of the square, the statue of Hercules by Romano Romanelli was inaugurated in 1937.

The two large hotels date from the 19th century.

The church of Ognissanti - Chiesa di Ognissanti

Address: Piazza d'Ognissanti

Opening hours: every day except Tuesday, 9:00–13:00 and 15:00–19:30.

Admission: free

The Chiesa di Ognissanti (church of All Saints), founded in the 13th century by the Order of the Humiliati, underwent several renovations up to the 17th century.

 

The majolica depicting the Coronation of the Virgin above the central portal is by the school of Andrea della Robbia.

Inside, Domenico Ghirlandaio decorated the funerary chapel of the Vespucci family. Under the cloak of the Virgin of Mercy sheltering the members of the Vespucci family, you can recognize, on the left, Amerigo, who unduly gave his name to the New World, and, on the right, the beautiful Simonetta Cattaneo, who is said to have given her features to the goddess of the Birth of Venus and to the Flora of Botticelli's Spring.

Cloister – hours – Monday, Tuesday, Saturday – 9:00–12:00

Through the Renaissance cloister, with 17th-century frescoes illustrating the life of Saint Francis, you reach the refectory decorated with a Last Supper (as often in convent refectories) by Domenico Ghirlandaio. The melancholy and the gentleness of the scene are disturbed by the flights of birds of prey above the garden shown in the background.