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Thames Hudson 5... a Day
Renaissance Florence on Five Florins a Day
This fascinating and fact-packed guide provides all the practical advice you need for a journey back to the golden age of one of Europe's great cultural cities. Take in the sights and sounds, marvel at Brunelleschis sublime cathedral dome, wonder at the sculptures and paintings that have made this the art capital of its day, and lose yourself in the thrilling (and often riotous) local feasts and festivals. Along the way, you will find out about the most important and influential families in Florence, the up-and-coming artists Michelangelo and Leonardo, and the humanist philosophers battling the Church. Here, too, is the darker side of life in the city, from its taverns and brothels to the grisly punishments meted out to wrongdoers and the reckless rabble-rousing of Savonarola. Also featured is invaluable advice if you're planning to travel outside of Florence to the stunning cities of Pisa, Siena, Arezzo and Cortona including how to recognize and avoid bandits, mercenaries and condottieri. This witty book will appeal to travellers, museum-goers or anyone who wonders what it would really have been like to visit this model of Renaissance culture.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
5 people are currently reading
137 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
June 8, 2017
The author has a way of transporting the Quattrocento in the present so that it feels like current affairs, and not history. The bits about the personal feuds, failings, triumphs and intrigues of the big names of the day were the most amusing parts.
December 1, 2024
conceito super divertido, execução perfeita
<3
<3
November 23, 2020
Insightful book about the culture, politics, arts, religion and economy of Florence at the end of the 15th century. Specifically, two years before the death of Lorenzo de' Medici.
July 1, 2014
First of all, I just have to say how much of a pleasure it is to finally find a beautiful hard-cover book with a tight-fitting dust-cover; one that more importantly doesn't slide off every fifteen seconds.
I had this book on my shelf for a while, and eventually decided to read it a couple of weeks before I visited Florence. In hindsight it would have been better to take it to Florence and read it while I was there. But even reading it when I did, Renaissance Florence on Five Florins a Day was a light and interesting read.
The concept of the book was intriguing - a travel guide for someone visiting the city in 1490, but one that would still be very useful to someone visiting Florence in today's world. The tone is light and occasionally humorous, the information is very interesting, and presented in such a way that it doesn't feel like a chore to read. Florence is a beautiful city with wonderful history, and for the most part this book did the city justice, albeit briefly within the confines of the purpose of the book. More importantly the Medici were depicted favourably but in a fair-minded manner, something quite important for me as I have researched the Medici somewhat, and therefore I feel a bit of an affinity to the family. However, there were a few small complaints in regards to the book as a whole.
Firstly; one of the reasons I said it would have been better to read this while in Florence is that it has a couple of sections where the author rattles off a whole lot of place names in relation to one another. Without any sort of context - despite being familiar with Florence through research - I very quickly found myself bored. Telling me I can walk across a certain market to get to Point A, and from there take a street to Point B, which is here in relation to Point C... Not really very helpful or interesting if I've never been to Florence before. So really Renaissance Florence on Five Florins a Day would be best for someone possessing that information in terms of context, either being in Florence or having previously visited the city.
Aside from the fact that it was sometimes slightly repetitive, I only really had one other problem with the book. Obviously it focuses on Florence - points of interest, history, culture, and the Medici family. It does well describing all of those things, and one would think that the author would finish on a bang, with some sort of astounding fact or final homage to the beauty of Florence. Instead, it sort of trails off, the final chapter being about other places in Tuscany. I read this book to learn about Florence. Admittedly there are other cities in Tuscany worthy of note, but at the end of this particular book such notice definitely felt out of place.
So in the end, I found this to be an adequate and easy source of information about the beautiful city of Florence, sufficiently feeding my excitement before my visit. However, don't expect it to be perfect, and I would recommend reading it during or after a visit to Florence.
I had this book on my shelf for a while, and eventually decided to read it a couple of weeks before I visited Florence. In hindsight it would have been better to take it to Florence and read it while I was there. But even reading it when I did, Renaissance Florence on Five Florins a Day was a light and interesting read.
The concept of the book was intriguing - a travel guide for someone visiting the city in 1490, but one that would still be very useful to someone visiting Florence in today's world. The tone is light and occasionally humorous, the information is very interesting, and presented in such a way that it doesn't feel like a chore to read. Florence is a beautiful city with wonderful history, and for the most part this book did the city justice, albeit briefly within the confines of the purpose of the book. More importantly the Medici were depicted favourably but in a fair-minded manner, something quite important for me as I have researched the Medici somewhat, and therefore I feel a bit of an affinity to the family. However, there were a few small complaints in regards to the book as a whole.
Firstly; one of the reasons I said it would have been better to read this while in Florence is that it has a couple of sections where the author rattles off a whole lot of place names in relation to one another. Without any sort of context - despite being familiar with Florence through research - I very quickly found myself bored. Telling me I can walk across a certain market to get to Point A, and from there take a street to Point B, which is here in relation to Point C... Not really very helpful or interesting if I've never been to Florence before. So really Renaissance Florence on Five Florins a Day would be best for someone possessing that information in terms of context, either being in Florence or having previously visited the city.
Aside from the fact that it was sometimes slightly repetitive, I only really had one other problem with the book. Obviously it focuses on Florence - points of interest, history, culture, and the Medici family. It does well describing all of those things, and one would think that the author would finish on a bang, with some sort of astounding fact or final homage to the beauty of Florence. Instead, it sort of trails off, the final chapter being about other places in Tuscany. I read this book to learn about Florence. Admittedly there are other cities in Tuscany worthy of note, but at the end of this particular book such notice definitely felt out of place.
So in the end, I found this to be an adequate and easy source of information about the beautiful city of Florence, sufficiently feeding my excitement before my visit. However, don't expect it to be perfect, and I would recommend reading it during or after a visit to Florence.
Read
July 28, 2011I must confess, contrary to my well established practise of finishing a book if I start it, I have not indeed read the entire book. Written in the style of a Lonely Planet guidebook I felt justified in sampling through such as one might with the Lonely Planet. Anyway - I found this an amusing enough experience - but to be honest it was a tad lacking in insight and polish. At times I felt the book couldn't quite decide if it was written in 1490's or the 2010's - some more attention to detail editing I suspect wouldn't have gone astray fixing that problem. Lets be frank about it - the type of readers attracted to a 1940's renaissance travel guide are the type of reader who will notice shallowness and expect a high level of intellectual engagement..
October 15, 2017
Like the other volumes I have read in this "pop history" series, this book was not particularly deep but very entertaining and still highly informative. Lots of good stuff, unsurprisingly focusing most on artists and the Medici family. I learned the most in the sections about Florentine guilds, banking and industry, and religious confraternities. I could have used more maps, as I had to several times use google maps to keep track of where things were.
April 4, 2023
Bursting with information.
I really enjoyed the way the book is presented as an informal travel guide, written from the persepective of someone living in renaissance Florence. It made the vast amount of information digestible and entertaining.
The quotes from contemporary figures such as Medici poetry and letters, merchants, politicians, and social commentators were highly insightful.
Recommended for the casual student of medieval living, and the connoisseur.
I really enjoyed the way the book is presented as an informal travel guide, written from the persepective of someone living in renaissance Florence. It made the vast amount of information digestible and entertaining.
The quotes from contemporary figures such as Medici poetry and letters, merchants, politicians, and social commentators were highly insightful.
Recommended for the casual student of medieval living, and the connoisseur.
May 3, 2024
Buen libro de historia social sobre cómo era el día a día de la Florencia del siglo XV. A través del escrito, te transporta a la capital del Renacimiento para explicarte su vida cotidiana, los edificios que puedes ver, las costumbres, personajes célebres, arte, etc. Las imágenes que acompañan son buenas, pero están en blanco y negro.
March 19, 2019
There are interesting parts, but it is mainly about hundred of name of artists and masterpieces between a couple of storytelling.
May 16, 2021
Well researched, fun, and absolutely brilliant. I am using it as a setting introduction for a role playing game, and all my players have been excited by it.
October 11, 2021
Interesting overview of Florence during the Renaissance.
October 6, 2025
Get your time machine ready! This is an amazing tourist guide to Florence anno domini 1490 perfect for all fans of Quattrocento Italy. I absolutely loved it!
March 10, 2011
Florenz für 5 Florentiner am Tag ist der vierte Band der Reiseführer in die Vergangenheit und behandelt nach London eine weitere Stadt der Renaissance.
Die anderen Bände der Reihe sind:
Athen für 5 Drachmen am Tag: Eine Stadt vor 2500 Jahren
Rom für 5 Denar am Tag: Ein Reiseführer in die Antike
Shakespeares London für 5 Schilling am Tag: Eine Stadt in der Renaissance
Auch dieser Band, der das Florenz der Renaissance im Jahre 1490 zum Thema hat, ist aufgebaut wie ein moderner Reiseführer, nur richtet er sich an einen fiktiven Reisenden des Jahres 1490.
Das Buch behandelt teilweise etwas andere Themenbereiche als ein moderner Reiseführer.
1 Vorbereitung auf die Anreise
2. Lebend er Florentiner
3. Unterwegs in Florenz
4. Politik und Kultur
5. Sehenswürdigkeiten
6. Zünfte, Handel und Steuern
7. Religion
8. Feste und Turniere
9. Auf dem Land
10. Die Toskana.
Es gibt einige witzige Anekdoten, wie jene über die Giraffe, die ein türkischer Botschafter Lorenzo de' Medici mitbrachte und die sich den Schädel wegen der Unnachgiebigkeit der Florentiner Architektur einschlug. Auch das Thema Bankgeheimnisse und die Erklärung woher viele unserer heute noch gebräuchlichen Begriffe in der Finanzwelt stammen war sehr unterhaltsam.
Spannend ist auch die Schilderungen des damaligen Fußballspiels mit 27 Spielern pro Mannschaft, dass eher eine Prügelei war, denn ein Ballspiel und dass das damalige Florenz den Ruf einer Homosexuellenhochburg hatte.
Das wichtigste Thema des Florenz der Renaissance ist und war neben der Politik der Medici die Kunst. So ergeht sich der Autor leider in teils langen und ermüdenden Beschreibungen von Kunstwerken und Künstlerbiografien, gespickt mit Anekdoten über Lorenzo de' Medici und seine berühmten Zeitgenossen. Diese Passagen ziehen sich teilweise doch recht zäh, besonders, wenn die beschriebenen Kunstwerke nicht abgebildet sind und man von diesen Künstlern noch nie etwas gehört hat.
Jedes Kapitel ist reich in schwarz-weiß bebildert und nach dem ersten und zweiten Drittel des Buches befinden sich mehrere Seiten mit Hochglanz Farbabbildungen.
Teilweise sind einige der Abbildungen etwas klein, besonders bei Gemälden die s/w wiedergegeben werden ist es teilweise schwer diese wirklich zu erfassen. Die Terrakotta auf S. 13 ist z. Bsp. zudem noch um 90° verdreht gedruckt, so dass man erst nach Drehen des Buches erkennt, was überhaupt dargestellt ist.
Da sich das Buch an einen Reisenden des Jahres 1490 richtet ist der Ausblick in die Zukunft von Michelangelo (S. 73) und Savonarola (S. 107 und Abbildung XI) zeitlich deplaziert, für den modernen Leser jedoch eine interessante Ergänzung.
Positiv ist anzumerken, dass dieser vierte Band der Reihe schwarz gedruckt ist und nicht wie seine Vorgänger teils in Sepia oder anderen schlecht lesbaren Farben.
Fazit: Eine gelungene Mischung aus unterhaltsamem Geschichtsbüchlein und Reiseführer. Wenn man einen Ausflug nach Florenz geplant hat wäre es sicherlich spannend zu erforschen wie und wo sich die Stadt des Lorenzo de' Medici verändert hat und was erhalten geblieben ist. Für alle anderen Leser ist es eine interessante Beschreibung einer Stadt der Renaissance ohne allzusehr mit historischen Details und Daten gequält zu werden.
Die anderen Bände der Reihe sind:
Athen für 5 Drachmen am Tag: Eine Stadt vor 2500 Jahren
Rom für 5 Denar am Tag: Ein Reiseführer in die Antike
Shakespeares London für 5 Schilling am Tag: Eine Stadt in der Renaissance
Auch dieser Band, der das Florenz der Renaissance im Jahre 1490 zum Thema hat, ist aufgebaut wie ein moderner Reiseführer, nur richtet er sich an einen fiktiven Reisenden des Jahres 1490.
Das Buch behandelt teilweise etwas andere Themenbereiche als ein moderner Reiseführer.
1 Vorbereitung auf die Anreise
2. Lebend er Florentiner
3. Unterwegs in Florenz
4. Politik und Kultur
5. Sehenswürdigkeiten
6. Zünfte, Handel und Steuern
7. Religion
8. Feste und Turniere
9. Auf dem Land
10. Die Toskana.
Es gibt einige witzige Anekdoten, wie jene über die Giraffe, die ein türkischer Botschafter Lorenzo de' Medici mitbrachte und die sich den Schädel wegen der Unnachgiebigkeit der Florentiner Architektur einschlug. Auch das Thema Bankgeheimnisse und die Erklärung woher viele unserer heute noch gebräuchlichen Begriffe in der Finanzwelt stammen war sehr unterhaltsam.
Spannend ist auch die Schilderungen des damaligen Fußballspiels mit 27 Spielern pro Mannschaft, dass eher eine Prügelei war, denn ein Ballspiel und dass das damalige Florenz den Ruf einer Homosexuellenhochburg hatte.
Das wichtigste Thema des Florenz der Renaissance ist und war neben der Politik der Medici die Kunst. So ergeht sich der Autor leider in teils langen und ermüdenden Beschreibungen von Kunstwerken und Künstlerbiografien, gespickt mit Anekdoten über Lorenzo de' Medici und seine berühmten Zeitgenossen. Diese Passagen ziehen sich teilweise doch recht zäh, besonders, wenn die beschriebenen Kunstwerke nicht abgebildet sind und man von diesen Künstlern noch nie etwas gehört hat.
Jedes Kapitel ist reich in schwarz-weiß bebildert und nach dem ersten und zweiten Drittel des Buches befinden sich mehrere Seiten mit Hochglanz Farbabbildungen.
Teilweise sind einige der Abbildungen etwas klein, besonders bei Gemälden die s/w wiedergegeben werden ist es teilweise schwer diese wirklich zu erfassen. Die Terrakotta auf S. 13 ist z. Bsp. zudem noch um 90° verdreht gedruckt, so dass man erst nach Drehen des Buches erkennt, was überhaupt dargestellt ist.
Da sich das Buch an einen Reisenden des Jahres 1490 richtet ist der Ausblick in die Zukunft von Michelangelo (S. 73) und Savonarola (S. 107 und Abbildung XI) zeitlich deplaziert, für den modernen Leser jedoch eine interessante Ergänzung.
Positiv ist anzumerken, dass dieser vierte Band der Reihe schwarz gedruckt ist und nicht wie seine Vorgänger teils in Sepia oder anderen schlecht lesbaren Farben.
Fazit: Eine gelungene Mischung aus unterhaltsamem Geschichtsbüchlein und Reiseführer. Wenn man einen Ausflug nach Florenz geplant hat wäre es sicherlich spannend zu erforschen wie und wo sich die Stadt des Lorenzo de' Medici verändert hat und was erhalten geblieben ist. Für alle anderen Leser ist es eine interessante Beschreibung einer Stadt der Renaissance ohne allzusehr mit historischen Details und Daten gequält zu werden.
August 8, 2015
Really enjoyed this book. There is something of a dearth of books on what daily life was like in the Italian renaissance (most focus on the art, understandably). This book lays out clearly and with a sense of humor how to spend your day and go through day to day life in 1490 Florence. Especially fun since I'm a fan of the Showtime series The Borgias so it was fun to get a glimpse of the city just two years before Rodrigo Borgia was made pope!
I do wish there had been a little more about women and clothing, but that's my only quibble. Recommended if you like history and/or are planning to visit Florence.
I do wish there had been a little more about women and clothing, but that's my only quibble. Recommended if you like history and/or are planning to visit Florence.
October 25, 2010
If you want to learn about Renaissance life as real people lived it, this is the book for you. Written in the format of a modern travel guide book, the book features short articles about pertinent topics from daily life "shops and markets" and "the role of women" to "the cathedral" to "Leonardo da Vinci," with copious illustrations and informative sidebars. The book is informative, breezy and fun to read. Meant as an informal historical treatment of the Renaissance city, the book would still serve as good information before you visit modern Florence.
July 31, 2010
I enjoyed this one a lot more than the Ancient Rome and Ancient Athens books...but I have to say that it might be because I knew a lot more about those topics than this one going in.
That said, I still think using a tourist guide as a concept for a history book is fun and clever, and the book is chock full of interesting tidbits.
Awful book cover. Don't judge by it.
That said, I still think using a tourist guide as a concept for a history book is fun and clever, and the book is chock full of interesting tidbits.
Awful book cover. Don't judge by it.
July 11, 2011
Easy-to-read, interesting book on what your life would be like if you were a visitor to Florence during the Renaissance. Talks about daily life, the influential families in Florence at that time, leading artists, but, most interestingly, the types of things you'd expect in any guidebook, except in this one you're transported back in time.
August 23, 2011
I totally enjoyed the idea of a travel book set in the 15th century and inviting travelers to recent travel sites that still can be found today. I just returned from Florence and I have to say that I used this book more than my modern guides and was completely satisfied.
October 13, 2011
I do like this one. I have to agree with Dad, tho: five florins a day is living pretty "high off the hog." A florin is a gold coin, expect when it's silver equivalent to a gold coin. Then again, this book concentrates on the rich and powerful, not on the common laborer. {Smile}
June 17, 2012
More like 4.5 stars but I'll round up. It was very informative; there were minor errors and at times the author drifted away from the whole idea that the book was supposed to be taking place in 1490. But I enjoyed it!
June 9, 2011
Loved the 1490 tour of Florence. This was a very enjoyable read. The quotes and commentaries are fun.
August 31, 2011
Amusing faux-travelogue.
December 11, 2011
Fun travelogue to read after "Room With A View", I am ready to go back and spend a few days on a new kind of visit.
June 23, 2014
Disappointing. An extremely cursory look at late 15th Century Florence. Shakespeare's London on 5 Groats a Day did it better.
Read
April 1, 2014On of the more interesting ways to learn about the culture/history of Renaissance Florence and Tuscany, this book is a historical take on the 'Europe on a shoestring budget' idea.
May 1, 2015
Nice book of history!
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews