Have you ever noticed those small little windows indented into the walls of the old palazzi in Florence? Miniature copies of their full size counterparts, the main entrances to each palazzo, are made of solid wood, are sometimes decorated with carvings or iron studs, and even have their own little knocker.
Known as bucchette del vino, they come complete with jambs and Romanesque or Gothic style arches hewn in the local stone.
The city of Florence used to be surrounded by high defensive walls. In Dan Brown’s Inferno, the adventures of the main character Robert Langon take place in this city.
The city walls surrounding Florence have been widened and rebuilt over the centuries six different times (although the actual count is controversial) to defend the city, which has undergone various expansions and contractions. Fortunately, solid and impressive remnants of the ancient city walls still survive: the doors (porte) and a few towers.
Viale Machiavelli is one of the Viali dei Colli (Avenues of the Hills), the scenic Florence boulevards that cross the hills surrounding the discrict of Oltrarno.
