Florence
Florence names 3 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below. 1 of them is described by more than one encyclopedia.
Florence a famous city of central Italy
Described by 2 of the 6 encyclopedias.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a famous city of central Italy; on both sides of the Arno, 63 miles Leg- S. by W. of Bologna; 68 E. N. E. of horn, and 187 N.N.W. of Rome. It stands in a richly wooded, well-cultivated, and beautiful valley, encircled by the Apennines, and is well built and agreeable. of Its shape is nearly a square, the sides which almost correspond with the cardinal points; the Arno intersects it from S. E. to N. W., three of the quarters into the which it is divided being situated on right, and the fourth on the left bank of the river. The communication between the opposite sides of the river is main- 1 ence contains a great number of magnificent edifices and squares, generally adorned with statues, columns, or fountains; there are no fewer than 170 churches, 89 convents, 2 royal, and many theaters other palaces, hospitals, and great and small. Each angle of a street , fit to be presents an architectural view drawn for a scene in a theater. Many of the houses are palaces, and are fitted up with great magnificence. The Piazza Reale is the largest square; it has a fine marble fountain, and an equestrian statue in bronze of . The Duke Cosmo I. by by John of Bologna exactly in Piazza del Mercato Vecchio, the center of the city, has a marble for column from which Florence radiates is one mile on each side. The Arno decidedly superior to the Tiber at Rome. of mar- The bridge Santa Trinita, built ble in 1559 by Ammanati, is designed in a style of elegance and simplicity unriefforts of valed by the most successful the modern artists. The bridges, and handsome though not spacious quays by bordered, afford fine which the river is being in views of the river, Florence "Eterthis respect much superior to the , a nal City." The duomo, or cathedral marble, about vast edifice, coated with in height 500 feet in length, and 384 feet in to the top of of the cross, stands a Arspacious square. It was begun by by nolfo di Lapo in 1296, and finished brick, Brunelleschi in 1426. It is built of and veneered, as it were, with partiarranged in narrow colored marble slabs strips or panels. The interior is very belfry, adstriking. The campanile or it joining the duomo, but detached from , fine tower 288 feet in height. The is a church of Santa Croce, called the Pantheon of Florence, is interesting from its and tombs of containing the remains four of the greatest men of modern Italy, or indeed of modern times-Michael Angelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and Alfieri. Palazzo Among the palaces are the , or Old Pa Palace, inhabited by the Vecchio Medici when citizens of Florence, which was begun in 1298, and finished in 1550. It is in a massive, severe, and gloomy style, with a tower 268 feet high. Adjoining it is the Piazza del Palazzo Vecchio, a square containing a fine colthe lection of statues, and a noble arcade, Loggia di Lanzi, under the porticoes of which are magnificent groups of sculpture. The Palazzo Pitti, erected in 1440, the ordinary residence of the King of Italy, is a vast and heavy structure; it is furnished in the most costly manner, and is enriched with a great number of the choicest works of art and virtu, and an excellent library. Attached to this palace are the Boboli Gardens, laid out by Cosmo I. in 1550, in the classical style. Connected with these gardens is the botanical garden, a museum of natural history, the Fontana anatomical collection in wax, etc. Another fine palace, the Riccardi (built in 1440), has a noble 1440), gallery with a ceiling painted by Luca Giordano, and a library of 40,000 volumes, open to the public. But the crowning glory of Florence is its Grand Gallery, occupying the upper floor of the Uffizi, a building erected after a design of Vasari, by Cosmo I., consisting of two parallel corridors or galleries, each 448 feet in length, and 72 feet apart, united at one end by a third corridor. This contains some masterpieces of statuary, as the world-renowned "Venus de Me dici," "The Knife-Grinder," the "Fawn," "Niobe and her Children," etc. The collection of pictures comprises superb examples of all the best schools. A splendid apartment, known as the Tribuna, contains the rarest treasures of the collection, and is in itself a wonder of art, with its cupola inlaid with mother-ofpearl, and its rich marble pavement. Besides the Riccardi and Laurentian libraries, the Magliabecchi library, containing a rare, extensive, and valuable collection of books, is also open to the public. Florence is subject to fogs in the winter; but in spring and autumn it is a delightful residence. The literary and educational institutions are both numerous and important. At the head of these is the famous Academia della Crusca. The charitable institutions are numerous, extensive, and well conducted. The encouragement given under the late as well as the present the present government, to artistic and scientific studies, ferred advantages on Florence unknown in most other parts of Italy. Manufactures silks, straw hats, articles of virtu, as intaglios, etc., jewelry, porcelain, perfumery, etc. Florence has produced more celebrated men than any other place in Italy, or, perhaps, of Europe; among others may be specified Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, Villani, Cosmo and Lorenzo de Medici; Galileo, Michael Angelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Benvenuto Cellini, Alberti, Lapo, Brunelleschi, Giotto, Andrea del Sarto, Machiavelli; Popes Leo X. and XI., Clement VII., VIII., and XII. The origin of this city is not clearly ascertained; but it owed its first distinction to Sylla, who planted in it a Roman colony. In 541 it was almost wholly destroyed by Totila, King of the Goths. About 250 years afterward it was restored by Charlemagne. It then became the chief city of a famous republic; and was for a lengthened period in Italy what Athens had been in Greece in the days of Xenophon and Thucydides. At length, in 1537, the Medici, from being the first of her citizens, became sovereign dukes of Florence. The city afterward became the capital of the former grandduchy of Tuscany till 1860, when it was annexed to the new kingdom of Italy, and in 1865, the seat of government was transferred thither from Turin. Pop. about 235,000. FLORENCE CRITTENTON MIS- SION, an organization, established in 1883 by C. F. Crittenton, having for its purpose the tendering of aid to women in need of it, particularly those of an unfortunate class. lass. The mission has established homes in seven cities of the United States, and has one in Marseilles, France, and another in Tokyo, Japan. Its principal establishment is in New York City, and here over 1,000 girls have been cared for. The head office is in Washington, D. C., and a feature of the mission is the provision of summer homes, to which girls can be sent for the summer holidays.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
a famous city of northern Italy. It is situated on both banks of the River Arno at the foot of the Apennines--a site of great natural beauty. The surrounding country is noted for its fertility--a fact hinted at in the name which, in the Italian, signifies flowery or flourishing, somewhat akin to our Florida. The site was occupied originally by a force of Roman soldiers. The old military camp grew into a trading city of importance. Like Pisa, Milan, and other commercial towns, it long maintained a sort of independence. The city was laid out four square and was surrounded by massive walls. Several bridges across the Arno connected the two parts of the city. That of Santa Trinita is noted for its graceful arches. With its bridges and quays, the city has one of the most impressive water frontages in Europe. Generally speaking, the walls have been leveled to make public parks and driveways, but, for the sake of their architectural features and historical associations, several of the old gateways have been retained. So long as traffic with the East was maintained by way of Venice and the caravan routes of western Asia, Florence was one of the most flourishing and powerful cities in Europe. It was for a time the monetary center of the West. During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the florin, taking its name from this city where it was first minted, was the chief commercial coin. The money changers, money lenders, jewelers, goldsmiths, and merchants of Florence were the wealthiest men in the world. As it led in wealth and influence, so Florence was also the first city in the West to rescue the painting, the sculpture, the architecture, and the literature of the Greeks from universal neglect. The city became noted as a center of art and literature. Few cities can boast a longer list of celebrated names. Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci , Michelangelo, Savonarola, Lorenzo de Medici, Machiavelli, and several noted popes were either natives or citizens of Florence. The Medici family was the wealthiest and most powerful family. Despite the efforts of Savonarola, the Medicis gradually acquired or assumed ducal authority and the manners of the city became voluptuous. Though its political influence and wealth have disappeared, Florence is still one of the most noted art centers in Europe. Numerous gardens, museums, palaces, galleries, and churches preserve the paintings and sculpture produced or acquired during the days of civic prosperity. Especially celebrated is the Ufizi Gallery. It surrounds two sides and an end of an oblong. Among the masterpieces of statuary are Niobe and Her Children, The Fawn, The Knifegrinder, and the Venus de Medici, famous as the most beautiful representation of the female form known. The wing devoted to paintings contains many masterpieces also. It is considered by many the most celebrated and precious collection of paintings in existence. Florence is a city of marble. The public squares are adorned with palaces, statues, and fountains. The Campanile or belltower is a noted structure. There are over 150 churches, many worthy of in spection. The cathedral is surmounted by a vast dome, 138 feet in diameter. Its apex is 380 feet above the pavement. The interior is nearly 500 feet in length. The most celebrated church is Santa Croce , called the Pantheon of Florence. It contains the tombs of Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, and other noted men. An account of the internal dissensions and factions of Florence would fill many an unprofitable volume. As stated, the Medici family acquired almost royal power. With other medieval cities, Florence lost its position as a free town and became merely the capital of Tuscany. Its government was tossed to and fro. At one time it was an appanage of France, at another of Austria. In 1865 Victor Emmanuel made the city the capital of United Italy, but five years later he removed the seat of government to Rome. The present population of the city is somewhat more than 200,000. It is still an important center of industry. Silks, straw hats, jewelry, cut stones, perfumes, porcelain wares, alabaster vases, terra cotta work, tiles, leather, and carvings are the chief manufactures. The mildness of the winter, the treasures of art, the cheapness of quarters once occupied by the nobility, and the numerous places of amusement render Florence an attractive place of residence. Many tourists from northern Europe spend the winter months here. Through its selection by the parents of Florence Nightingale, the name of this famous city has become a popular given name for girls. See Cathedral ; Italy ; Savonarola ; Machiavelli ; Medici
Florence a city of South Carolina
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a city of South Carolina, It is The county-seat of Florence co. on the Atlantic Coast Line and the railroads Southern Carolina Western . agricul- It is the center of an important tural region and has an important trade industries inin tobacco and cotton. Its clude cottonseed oil mills, railway repair , machine shops, lumber mills, etc. shops of the South Carolina In- It is the seat dustrial School and a State agricultural Within its borders experiment station. Pop. (1910) 7,is a national cemetery. 057; (1920) 10,968.
Florence a city and county-seat Tennesof Lauderdale co.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a city and county-seat Tennesof Lauderdale co., Ala.; on the and the see river, and on the Southern Here Louisville and Nashville railroads. , a high are the State Normal College a number school, several churches, and newspapers. The city has of weekly manufactories of iron, cotton, wagons, 6,689; ice, flour, stoves, etc. Pop. (1910) (1920) 10,529.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Collier's in 1921 called the Palazzo Pitti "the ordinary residence of the King of Italy"; the monarchy was abolished by referendum in 1946 and the Pitti is now a state museum complex. The bridge of Santa Trinita, praised as "unrivaled by the most successful efforts of the modern artists," was blown up with all the other Arno bridges except the Ponte Vecchio by retreating German troops in August 1944, and rebuilt from salvaged stone by 1958. In November 1966 the Arno burst its banks and flooded the historic centre, damaging thousands of paintings, books and manuscripts and prompting an international restoration effort; a car bomb outside the Uffizi in 1993 killed five people and damaged part of the gallery. The buildings, squares and collections the entry lists are still there and still the reason people come — the centre was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982 — but they now absorb millions of visitors a year rather than a season's genteel residents.
Written for this edition, 2026.