Florence, Page 3 ..

The third building is the 13^th century bell tower, always called “Giotto’s Tower” It was he who designed it, but he died just three years after it was begun, and others completed it.

  Hidden on a street behind the cathedral is the Museum of Santa Maria del Fiore, which is among my favorite museums. It houses many originals, such as the panels of Ghiberti’s doors.

But what I like best here is Michelangelo’s arresting Pieta. He carved 4 Pietas, statues of the dead Christ and those who loved him. The most famous one, of course, is in Saint Peter’s in Rome. It was his first. The one here was his last. It was done when he was over 75 years old. You wonder not only at its beauty, but are amazed that at such an advanced age he would still possess the great physical strength necessary to create it. The face of Joseph is Michelangelo’s self-portrait, and reflects his love of Christ.

We went next to the Bargello, once a prison, now a museum. No pictures are permitted inside, but here is where Donatello’s David and Michelangelo’s Drunken Bacchus are found.

The crowds are here, and it's still mid-May