In our last article, we outlined the long and rich historical heritage of the city of Florence and how it has given the city a predisposition for both tourist attractions and tales of ghost sightings and spooky legends.
In fact, as we saw, some of these stories are right out in the open with key features from the tales being plainly visible on the streets such as the strange stone face on the side of the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore and the permanently ajar window of the Palazzo Budini-Gattai.
There are, however, plenty of other buildings and spots all over the city that have creepy or ghostly pasts. Just read on to discover some more and then find a luxury villa in Florence so you can spend your next Hallowe'en exploring the murkier side of the city's history.
In fact, as we saw, some of these stories are right out in the open with key features from the tales being plainly visible on the streets such as the strange stone face on the side of the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore and the permanently ajar window of the Palazzo Budini-Gattai.
There are, however, plenty of other buildings and spots all over the city that have creepy or ghostly pasts. Just read on to discover some more and then find a luxury villa in Florence so you can spend your next Hallowe'en exploring the murkier side of the city's history.
One of the most famous and greatest love stories that comes from the city stars Renaissance lovers Francesco I de' Medici (who would go on to become the Grand Duke of Tuscany) and well-known Venetian beauty Bianca Cappello. Their secret and scandalous marriage is fascinating enough but is not where their story ends.
A few years later they were poisoned by arsenic and suffered for 11 days before dying within hours of each other. It is thought that they were murdered by Francesco's brother and to add insult to injury, they were separated in death. Francesco was buried with his previous wife and Bianca was placed in a common grave at San Lorenzo. To this day, she is said to roam around the Palazzo di Bianca Cappello on Via Maggio in search of her husband.
A few years later they were poisoned by arsenic and suffered for 11 days before dying within hours of each other. It is thought that they were murdered by Francesco's brother and to add insult to injury, they were separated in death. Francesco was buried with his previous wife and Bianca was placed in a common grave at San Lorenzo. To this day, she is said to roam around the Palazzo di Bianca Cappello on Via Maggio in search of her husband.
Another supposedly haunted Florentine building is the Pensione Burchianti, a well-respected hotel in the heart of the city that happens to be one of the most haunted in Europe. There are all sorts of crazy stories that come from this hotel and they make The Shining come to mind; ghostly apparitions of a girl giggling in the halls, a maid that moves from room to room and an old lady knitting on a chair, eyes watching from the shadows, icy breath on people's faces and beds sagging under invisible figures. More frightening are the reported instances of guests waking with an immense pressure on their chest, unable to breathe. So frightening were such stories that the previous owner used to insist on leaving a 6pm, along with all the female staff, and only the night watchmen remained on the premises until the morning.
It seems, then, that both culture lovers and those interested in the paranormal will find something for them in Florence and it would make for a perfect destination for anyone in Tuscany this Hallowe'en!
It seems, then, that both culture lovers and those interested in the paranormal will find something for them in Florence and it would make for a perfect destination for anyone in Tuscany this Hallowe'en!
