If you have found a luxury villa in Florence and you find yourself wandering around the beyond picturesque centre of the city, you get the feeling that you are inside a jewel box. No matter where you turn in the historic core, you will discover incredible artistic and architectural gems and within those architectural gems are even more astounding works of art and craftsmanship than one could even imagine. It would take lifetimes to see and discover it all. However, the reputations of some works are particularly well-known and precede them. Take, for example, the great Palazzo Medici Riccardi, already a lauded example of Renaissance palace architecture in Tuscany but hidden within its walls also happens to be one of the most extraordinary fresco cycles in the city – and that’s saying something in the birthplace of the Renaissance!
Located in the so-called Magi Chapel, the walls are almost completely occupied by a cycle of frescoes by the Renaissance master Benozzo Gozzoli. Painted around 1459 for the famous and powerful Medici family, who were the effective rulers of Florence at the time, this incredible work of art consists of scenes of the Angels in Adoration and, importantly, a cycle of three paintings, each of which charts the voyage of each of the Three Magi on their way to Bethlehem to see the Nativity of Jesus. This work, in its own right, is important and influential. However, it has also inspired a wonderful and breathtaking annual event in the city each festive season. A procession in sumptuous costume and with great pomp and ceremony, inspired by the fresco cycle and the events they depict, winds its way through the city centre each year on the 6th of January. An astounding sight to behold, it is one of the many incredible local traditions that one can enjoy if spending Christmas in Florence.
With everything kicking off at 2pm, the procession of this spectacularly costumed parade begins at the Piazza Pitti and then carefully winds its way through the beautiful historic centre of Florence with much fanfare and excitement until the group ends up in the extraordinary Piazza del Duomo (already adorned with a massive Christmas tree and lovely life-size Nativity scene) at around 3.30pm. From 2.30pm, the Children’s Choir of the Cathedral have set up outside the massive and impressive Florentine cathedral and perform an array of lovely Christmas carols. Inside the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, meanwhile, the Magi who have just made their voyage through the city present their gifts to the image of the infant Christ. Finally, there is a reading from a passage of the Holy Gospel pertaining to the Magi and blessings by clergy members of the Cathedral and city.
So, if you have been considering planning a trip to Florence over the Holiday Season, then be sure to also keep this fact in mind: Christmas is not truly over in the city until well into the month of January. There are still events to be enjoyed after the big day, the lights remain up, and the beloved winter sale season begins, making it the perfect time to find the ideal gift for yourself and others at a bargain! And, of course, you have all those unique traditions to enjoy and explore, just like Florence’s famous and exciting Procession of the Magi.
Get browsing our wonderful villas in Florence and our excellent villas in Tuscany and plan a perfect winter getaway to experience the city when it is at its most picturesque, lovely, magical, and utterly full of all sorts of exciting things to see and do, both before and after the actual day of Christmas.
With everything kicking off at 2pm, the procession of this spectacularly costumed parade begins at the Piazza Pitti and then carefully winds its way through the beautiful historic centre of Florence with much fanfare and excitement until the group ends up in the extraordinary Piazza del Duomo (already adorned with a massive Christmas tree and lovely life-size Nativity scene) at around 3.30pm. From 2.30pm, the Children’s Choir of the Cathedral have set up outside the massive and impressive Florentine cathedral and perform an array of lovely Christmas carols. Inside the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, meanwhile, the Magi who have just made their voyage through the city present their gifts to the image of the infant Christ. Finally, there is a reading from a passage of the Holy Gospel pertaining to the Magi and blessings by clergy members of the Cathedral and city.
So, if you have been considering planning a trip to Florence over the Holiday Season, then be sure to also keep this fact in mind: Christmas is not truly over in the city until well into the month of January. There are still events to be enjoyed after the big day, the lights remain up, and the beloved winter sale season begins, making it the perfect time to find the ideal gift for yourself and others at a bargain! And, of course, you have all those unique traditions to enjoy and explore, just like Florence’s famous and exciting Procession of the Magi.
Get browsing our wonderful villas in Florence and our excellent villas in Tuscany and plan a perfect winter getaway to experience the city when it is at its most picturesque, lovely, magical, and utterly full of all sorts of exciting things to see and do, both before and after the actual day of Christmas.
