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The Atlas Obscura Guide To Florence

29 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Florence, Italy

Updated January 31, 2023

Unusual Attractions in Florence

Florence, Italy

Galileo's Middle Finger

The middle finger of modernity.

Florence, Italy

Michelangelo's Hidden Drawings

The doodles of a genius line the walls of a secret room under the Medici Chapel.

Florence, Italy

Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy

The oldest operating pharmacy in the world features 800-year-old recipes.

Florence, Italy

Buontalenti Grotta

A large grotto built in the 16th century amidst Florence's famous Boboli gardens.

Florence, Italy

La Specola Anatomical Collection

The largest and most famous wax anatomical collection anywhere in the world.

Florence, Italy

Medici Hall of Maps (Sala delle Carte Geografiche)

Over 50 exquisite hand-painted Renaissance maps decorate a Medici storage room.

Florence, Italy

L’importuno di Michelangelo

The famous sculptor left his mark on this Italian wall in an internationally protected example of street art.

Florence, Italy

Il Porcellino

This bronze boar's snout has been rubbed to a golden sheen by visitors seeking good fortune.

See All 29 Things To Do in Florence

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Florence

Florence, Italy

Babae Wine Window

Drink wine handed out through a window as part of an age-old tradition.

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Guided Tours of Florence

Atlas Obscura Trips

Culinary Naples: Producers, Purveyors, and Pizzaioli

From street food to lavish feasts, piping-hot coffee to smooth aperitivos, folk songs to opera, hilltop farms to urban wilds, immerse yourself in the greatest culinary and cultural experiences of Naples, meeting lively local Neapolitani for whom this is the only way to live.

Explore Florence, Italy

Museums And Collections 7

Architectural Oddities 4

Sacred Spaces 4

Medical Museums 3

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Stories About Florence

Podcast: Galileo’s Middle Finger

Investigating a renowned scientist's iconic digit.

by The Podcast Team

January 31, 2023

6 Groundbreaking Women You Didn’t Learn About in History Class

Meet the painter, the pilot, the author, and other "firsts" who paved the way.

In 14th-Century Florence, Some Residents Socially Distanced While Others Hit the Bars

A contemporary debate would feel familiar to Europeans alive when the Bubonic plague arrived.

by Rachel Ashcroft

August 19, 2020

The Coronavirus Is Bringing Back Florence's Wine Windows

This isn't the first time they've come in handy during a pandemic.

by Matthew Taub

August 11, 2020

The Many Lives of Demogorgon, From Scribal Error to 'Stranger Things'

How vague and various descriptions made a medieval mistake into a lasting horror.

by Daniel A. Gross

October 25, 2019

A Nun's 450-Year-Old 'Last Supper' Makes Its Museum Debut in Florence

Plautilla Nelli was likely the first woman in history to paint the iconic biblical scene.

by Karen Chernick

October 17, 2019

One of Florence's 'Wine Windows' Is Open Once More

It's a reminder of when Florentine families sold wine from their palace cellars.

August 14, 2019

Meet the 'Citrus Archaeologist' Who Rediscovered Dozens of Ancient Plants

Paolo Galeotti unearthed the citruses at Florence's Villa di Castello gardens, which belonged to the Medicis.

by Federico Formica

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