 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Postcards from Florence |
 |
| Click on the picture to display full size |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| The Romans, under Caesar Augustus, founded the colony of "Florentia" in 59 B.C. By the year 1200 the city with over 100,000 inhabitants extended beyond the other bank of the Arno river. By the 15th century the Medici family took economic and political control of the city. Under their patronage, artists such as Botticelli, Michelangelo, Filippo Lippi, Vasari, Buontalenti and Donatello, turned the city into one of the world's greatest artistic capitals. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |