{"id":493,"date":"2016-06-14T13:24:00","date_gmt":"2016-06-14T13:24:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-10-28T09:29:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T09:29:10","slug":"seven-questions-about-florence-you-were-too-embarrassed-to-ask","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/romancandletours.com\/blog\/2016\/06\/14\/seven-questions-about-florence-you-were-too-embarrassed-to-ask\/","title":{"rendered":"SEVEN QUESTIONS ABOUT FLORENCE YOU WERE TOO EMBARRASSED TO ASK"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Seven Questions About Florence You Were Too Embarrassed To Ask<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n
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\n<\/span>We\u2019ve all been there \u2013 we\u2019re on a tour of an amazing place and our knowledgeable guide just keeps on talking, but in the back of our mind questions are popping up that seem so petty or obvious that we\u2019re embarrassed to ask them. So we don\u2019t; and we leave the amazing place none the wiser.
\nAt Roman Candle Tours<\/a>, though, we believe that all things are worth explaining. So with that in mind, here\u2019s a quick round-up of some of the questions about Florence you may have wanted to ask but didn\u2019t.<\/span><\/div>\n

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1. Q. Why is David\u2019s penis so small? <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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A. The small-sized penis on Michelangelo\u2019s David<\/a> was fairly standard in its day. If you look at another version of David by Donatello \u2013 sculpted a century before Michelangelo\u2019s and now in Florence\u2019s Bargello museum \u2013 you\u2019ll also see a seriously diminished manhood. This was typical of the Renaissance period, when artists strove to replicate the ideals of Greek statuary. While the Greeks certainly had no problem with nudity or sex, they did believe that great men were rational men who could control their urges. A big or erect penis on a statue was more indicative of wanton lust, upsetting the equilibrium and proportions required for philosophical purity.
\nFor a more straightforward answer \u2013 the penis is flaccid. Not all men are huge, particularly when unaroused! Even so, in absolute terms, the penis is not especially small \u2013 about 5 inches \u2013 it\u2019s just that the statue itself is 14 feet tall.<\/span><\/div>\n

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2. Q. What exactly was the Renaissance? <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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A. The word Renaissance \u2013 \u2018Rinascimento\u2019 in Italian \u2013 literally means \u2018rebirth.\u2019 It refers to a period from the 14th century until roughly 1600 when the rediscovery of knowledge, texts, and artwork from the ancient world led to a new age of learning, discovery, and creative achievement. These centuries coincided with a social revolution in Italy when rich middle-class merchants and bankers came to replace the nobility as the real drivers of society. Florence<\/a> was more associated with this new exciting age than any other city, spawning a powerful merchant class that included families such as the Medici, Strozzi, and Tornabuoni, and great artists such as Giotto, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, and Michelangelo.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Q. Who were the Medici family? <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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A. The Medici were a major Tuscan<\/a> family who came to prominence in Florentine society from the 14th century onwards. Accumulating a huge amount of wealth firstly as wool merchants and later as bankers, the Medici were the most powerful family in Florence by the 15th century, effectively controlling the destiny of the Florentine Republic. They used their position not only to promote their political and business interests but also to patronise the arts \u2013 one member of the family, Lorenzo, was so munificent in funding artworks that he became known as \u2018the Magnificent.\u2019 The Medici family eventually went on to provide three popes (including the fun-loving Leo X in 1513), marry into French royalty, and rule the Grand Duchy of Tuscany until the beginning of the 18th century.<\/span>
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4. Q. Isn\u2019t the Duomo just another pretty church?<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n
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A. The Duomo<\/a> is indeed a very pretty church but there\u2019s a lot more to it than that. It also happens to be the cathedral of Florence (dedicated to the Virgin Mary) and one of the greatest structural achievements of the last millennium. Indeed, one particular part of the building is so influential that it has even changed language \u2013 the word \u2018dome\u2019 in English actually comes from the tiara-shaped vault you\u2019ll find here.
\nBuilt by Filippo Brunelleschi \u2013 who spent decades fighting with town administrators and his unqualified co-architect Lorenzo Ghiberti \u2013 the dome (\u2018cupola\u2019 in Italian) was the very first of its kind erected since ancient Roman times more than 1,000 years before. Many thought Brunelleschi was mad and that his dome would collapse; instead, it became the model for a whole succession of later monumental domes on the likes of St. Peter\u2019s Basilica, St. Paul\u2019s of London, and the Capitol Building in Washington DC. <\/span>
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5. Q. Were the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles really named after Florentine artists?<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n
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A. The answer is yes, more or less. Three of the four ninja turtles were named after the great Florentine artists Donatello, Leonardo da Vinci, and Michelangelo Buonarroti. The fourth got his moniker from Raphael Sanzio, who was actually born in Urbino \u2013 another great Italian Renaissance town \u2013 but nonetheless spent some of his early active years in Florence<\/a>.<\/span>
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6. Q. What\u2019s so special about a Florentine (fiorentina) steak? <\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Photo credit: <\/span>McPig<\/a><\/i><\/div>\n

A. If you\u2019re a meat-eater, you cannot miss the chance to have a bistecca alla fiorentina while in Florence<\/a>. This steak is not any old T-bone; the true fiorentina is produced from the delicious meat of white Chianina cattle, one of the oldest breeds of cows in the world, although some other breeds \u2013 such as Maremma \u2013 are also acceptable. The meat must be hung for around 20 days, cut very thick (2\/2.5 inches), left to rest before cooking, and then grilled for around 5 minutes each side over a charcoal or wood flame. When ordering a bistecca alla fiorentina, don\u2019t even bother saying how you want it cooked \u2013 you\u2019re getting it rare and tender whether you like it or not. Don\u2019t like rare steak? Try it anyway, you\u2019ll probably love it, particularly with a bottle of robust Chianti or Brunello wine.<\/span>
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7. Q. Is it just me or did someone forget to put salt in my bread?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n
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A. Don\u2019t worry, nobody forgot the salt; Florentine bread (\u2018pane toscano\u2019) is actually baked without it. There is a story that the salt has been omitted since the Middle Ages when a high tax was put on it, raising the price of a key raw material for Florentine bakers, who stubbornly refused to use the ingredient from then on. Whether the story is true or not, unsalted bread has become one of the staples of Tuscan cuisine, ideally suited to complement the richer flavours of other dishes. Still not convinced? Pour a little salt on the bread yourself and dip it in some good olive oil and you\u2019ll enjoy it much more.<\/span><\/span>
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\n<\/span><\/span>You see? \u2013 Just like David\u2019s penis, that wasn\u2019t so hard. Because here at Roman Candle Tours<\/a>, we believe there\u2019s no such thing as a bad question!<\/span>
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\n<\/span>Written by: <\/span>Shane Harnett<\/a><\/span>
\nIf you liked this article, read also <\/span>“SEVEN INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT ROME YOU PROBABLY DIDN\u2019T KNOW”<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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