Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Italy Trip Blog #23: Brunelleschi's Dome - Fun Facts


Brunelleschi's Dome
Welcome to the 23rd blog of our Italy tour. This blog looks at fun facts about Brunelleschi's Dome of the Cathedral of Florence.
 While touring it we learns some interesting facts about it. The dome was 150 feet across and 180 feet high.

1) The basilica was built in 1296 and the place where the dome now sits was an open roof. Under it was an altar where the sun and rain came in. It wasn't until 1418 that a plan for a roof or dome was made. The Basilica that houses Brunelleschi's famous Dome took 200 years to build, and it was purposely built to outdo other cities' basilicas.
Looking up from under the dome

2) In 1418 the worried Florentine fathers announced a contest for the ideal dome design, with a handsome prize of 200 gold florins—and a shot at eternal fame—for the winner.

3) Brunelleschi invented a three-speed hoist with an intricate system of gears, pulleys, screws, and driveshafts, powered by a single yoke of oxen turning a wooden tiller. It used a special rope 600 feet long and weighing over a thousand pounds!  He also made other lifting machines, including the castello, a 65-foot-tall crane with a series of counterweights and hand screws to move loads laterally once they’d been raised to the right height.

perspective to show height of dome
4)  The elders of the town thought that anyone could finish the dome so Brunelleschi, who designed it pretended to be sick for a week and the work stopped. The elders thought they could get someone else to finish it because they said that Brunelleschi was being paid too much. He wound up finishing it.

Rob and Tom at dome top
5) Michelangelo called the outside of the dome a "cricket cage" so the architect who was building it was so offended he stopped after only 2 of the 8 sides (it was an octagon). He left it unfinished.



6) The dome is an octagon because it symbolizes 7 days that god created and the 8th day is a non-ending day.


NEXT: THE CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE DOME 

OUR SHORT VIDEO inside the dome...
 

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I'm a simple guy who enjoys the simple things in life, especially our dogs. I volunteer for dog rescues, enjoy exercising, blogging, politics, helping friends and neighbors, participating in ghost investigations, coffee, weather, superheroes, comic books, mystery novels, traveling, 70s and 80s music, classic country music,writing books on ghosts and spirits, cooking simply and keeping in shape. You'll find tidbits of all of these things on this blog and more. EMAIL me at Rgutro@gmail.com - Rob

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