Florence's Most Fascinating Literary Tours: In the Footsteps of Dante and Other Authors

Literary tours of Florence reveal the passionate soul of a city that was the birthplace of the Supreme Poet, but which has also seen the passing of authors such as Boccaccio, Petrarch, Machiavelli, and Lorenzo de’ Medici.

Florence was the birthplace of the Dolce Stil Novo, the city was the setting for early 20th-century magazines, and the artistic capital of the Renaissance.

With literary cafés like Giubbe Rosse and Caffè Paskowski, it attracted authors such as Montale, D’Annunzio, Palazzeschi, Luzi, Bigongiari, Soffici, and Parronchi.

Florence was also the first place where Carlo Collodi’s “The Adventures of Pinocchio: The Story of a Puppet” was published, way back in 1883.

Florence has also been home to important publishing houses and historic institutions, such as the Accademia della Crusca and the Gabinetto Scientifico Letterario Vieusseux.

All this offers us so many opportunities for discovery, to be enjoyed by taking pleasant strolls through the historic center, through streets and squares that reveal a Florence made of stories, words, and characters.

Dante Alighieri: A Journey through the Lands of the Supreme Poet

A literary journey through Florence cannot fail to begin in the footsteps of the most celebrated and renowned man of all time.

The Dante Alighieri tour in Florence begins with a visit to Piazza Santa Croce, where we can admire the statue of Dante created by sculptor Enrico Pazzi in 1865 to coincide with the celebrations for the 600th anniversary of the poet’s birth. The work is made of white Carrara marble, featuring the figure wearing a laurel wreath, wrapped in a long cloak, clutching the book of the Divine Comedy in his right hand and an eagle with half-closed wings perched on his left hip.

Next, we move to Via Santa Margherita to visit the Church of Santa Margherita dei Cerchi, the place where (according to a tradition unconfirmed by historians) Dante saw Beatrice.

We continue to Piazza San Martino, on the corner of Via dei Magazzini and Via Dante Alighieri. Here we find the Oratory of the Buonomini of San Martino.

Once known as the Church of San Martino al Vescovo, it was patronized by the Alighieri and Donati families, and it is likely where the union between Dante and Gemma Donati was celebrated in 1285.

Also in the same square is the Torre della Castagna, linked to Dante during his time as prior of Florence, between 1300 and 1302.

During this period, the conflicts between the White Guelphs and the Black Guelphs intensified, but Dante, despite belonging to the White Guelph faction, managed to maintain a neutral stance.

The tower was built during the 11th century and takes its name from the bag in which the priors placed chestnuts to cast their votes.

Overlooking Via del Proconsolo is the Badia Fiorentina, a Catholic church built in 978 where, according to legend, Dante, still a child, first met Bice Portinari, Beatrice from the Divine Comedy.

The Badia is dedicated to the Virgin Mary, boasts a bell tower approximately 70 meters high, and is in a purely Gothic style after being renovated in 1285 based on a design by Arnolfo di Cambio.

Another famous location is Dante’s Stone, located between Piazza delle Pallottole and Via dello Studio. Here, between two shops, we find a marble slab marking the spot where the Poet rested while observing the construction of the Cathedral.

We then head to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore itself, where we can admire the fresco created by Domenico di Michelino in 1465 depicting Dante and the setting of the Divine Comedy. In the work, we recognize the Dark Forest, Hell with its imposing entrance portal and the procession of the damned, the mountain of Purgatory, Paradise with its depiction of the first seven heavens, and Florence within its walls.

We move to Via del Proconsolo, where we visit the Palazzo del Bargello. Inside, we find the Chapel of the Magdalene, decorated with frescoes from Giotto’s workshop. Among these is a portrait of Dante Alighieri, located in the Paradise section, considered by historians to be one of the oldest and most reliable.

Remaining on Via del Proconsolo, we enter the Palazzo dell’Arte dei Giudici e Notai, which houses a fresco cycle that also includes a portrait of Dante. The poet is depicted alongside several literary figures, including Giovanni Boccaccio.

During our walk among Dante’s places, we can also play at identifying the 34 plaques dedicated to the Divine Comedy, located throughout the city. Each plaque features tercets from the work: 9 from the Inferno, 5 from Purgatory, 20 from Paradise.

Dante’s House and Baptistery

Via Santa Margherita is home to the Dante House Museum, which incorporates several medieval houses, such as one of the two Giuochi towers. Dante himself wrote that he was born under the parish of San Martino, although there is no certainty as to the correspondence between the actual residence and the Museum. Many point to a destroyed building that once stood opposite the Torre della Castagna as the Alighieri family’s actual home, where the Fine Arts Society-Circolo degli Artisti and the Il Pennello restaurant are currently located.

The Museum allows you to immerse yourself in Dante’s world through a truly multi-sensory experience thanks to a modern technological and multimedia display that allows you to encounter Dante as a man, soldier, prophet, and politician. Inside, there are immersive rooms, video mapping, and virtual reality that will help you learn about Dante while also experiencing the journey through Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise.

Among the places dear to the poet is certainly the “beautiful San Giovanni,” the Baptistery where he was baptized on March 26, 1266. The building has an octagonal plan and is the only church in Florence that still retains its original shape from Dante’s time.

It boasts a central basin and small wells all around. One of these is featured in a passage in Canto XIX of the Inferno, where Dante recounts having destroyed a small well to save a child who had fallen into it.

Machiavelli and Renaissance Florence

Among the most interesting literary tours in Florence, we also find one that allows us to retrace the footsteps of the father of modern political science, Niccolò Machiavelli.

Our itinerary follows a specific route and passes through famous places and monuments:

Convent of San Marco: here Niccolò Machiavelli met Girolamo Savonarola. In 1498, Machiavelli himself sent a letter to the papal ambassador Ricciardo Becchi describing the friar’s actions and prophecies;
Palazzo Medici Riccardi: on Via Cavour, we find this building, built in the mid-15th century by Michelozzo, a symbol of the Medici’s political and cultural power. The comedy “La Mandragola” was performed here to celebrate the wedding of Lorenzo di Piero de’ Medici;
Basilica of San Lorenzo: the location is linked to the letter Machiavelli wrote to Ricciardo Becchi regarding Savonarola’s prophecies. In this letter, the writer recounts that the friar preached to men in San Marco and to women in San Lorenzo.
Piazza della Signoria: the symbol of civic power was one of the most important places in Machiavelli’s life during the period in which he served as secretary and second chancellor of the republican government after the expulsion of the Medici (1498-1512). Overlooking Piazza della Signoria is Palazzo Vecchio, where Piero Soderini, Gonfaloniere for life, resided, and to whom the writer was a collaborator.
The Tabernacle of the Stinche: a few steps from the Bargello, we find a place that represents one of the darkest moments in Machiavelli’s life. The tabernacle was a resting place for those condemned to death. In the aftermath of the Sack of Prato, Machiavelli himself was imprisoned here on charges of conspiracy.
Casa Buonarroti and Santa Croce: these locations connect us with the final years of Machiavelli’s life. Casa Buonarroti preserves valuable objects and drawings by the artist of Florentine fortifications. The Basilica of Santa Croce houses Machiavelli’s remains after his burial in 1527.
Palazzo Strozzi: the headquarters of the National Institute of Renaissance Studies houses the Machiavelli-Serristori Collection, which contains ancient volumes.

Other famous authors and their secret corners

Florence and literature are a strong bond, rooted in centuries past and exemplified by key authors and figures:

Vittorio Alfieri: the celebrated playwright from Asti lived and died at Lungarno Corsini 2, in the building that now houses the British Consulate;
Hans Christian Andersen: the Danish author is famous for the fairy tales “The Little Mermaid,” “The Princess and the Pea,” “Thumbelina,” “The Ugly Duckling,” “The Little Match Girl,” and “The Snow Queen.” In Piazza del Mercato Nuovo, we can see the famous statue of the little pig and the plaque commemorating the fairy tale “The Bronze Pig of Porta Rossa,” created by the author, who often visited Florence;
Ludovico Ariosto: the creator of “Orlando Furioso” stayed in the city at Palazzo Buondelmonti in Piazza Santa Trinita 1. Here we find a stone plaque commemorating this;
Giovanni Boccaccio: the author of The Decameron was most likely born on Via Toscanella. In the place many believe to be his birthplace, we find a plaque with a quote from Giovanni Gherardo da Prato. On Via del Proconsolo, however, is the Palazzo dell’Arte dei Giudici e Notai. The first floor currently houses a restaurant. Here is an ancient portrait of Boccaccio, part of a fresco cycle of Florentine poets;
Elizabeth Barrett Browning: the famous English poet lived in what is now the Guidi Museum, between Piazza San Felice and Via Maggio. The author of the sonnet “In quanto modi ti amo?” stayed there between 1847 and 1861 with her husband Robert. She is buried in the English cemetery in Piazzale Donatello;
Giosuè Carducci: the first Italian winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature spent his adolescence in Florence, living in a building at Via Romana 135, where a commemorative plaque commemorates him;
Carlo Collodi: the inventor of Pinocchio was born and lived in a building at Via Taddea 21, which today bears a commemorative plaque. From adulthood until his death, he lived in Florence, at Via Rondinelli 7;
Edmondo De Amicis: the author of the book Cuore (Heart) frequented Emilia Peruzzi’s literary salon, a center of intellectual gathering, located at Borgo de’ Greci 14;
Fyodor Dostoevsky: the author of “Crime and Punishment” visited Florence several times, staying at the Pension Suisse on Via Tornabuoni and frequenting the Gran Caffè Doney.