The Rape of the Sabines

by Giambologna, in the courtyard of Piazza della Signoria. In this context "rape" means kidnapping. This tells of a story that happened in early Roman history where the Romans tried to negotiate with the Sabines to marry their women (they obviously had a low female population) but the Sabines refused as they didn't want to loose their bloodlines. So the Romans decided to kidnap the women instead. The amazing part of this statue is not the story behind it however but that it was carved out of one piece of marble. The detail is incredible.

Renaissance, Renaissance, Renaissance and good ol' Italian Food

March 23rd 2008
So here we are, home of the Renaissance - Firenze, Italia. We made our way from Sorrento to Naples, leaving our ability to buy tickets and board the train we intended on catching on time in the hands of the travel gods. They were kind and we made it with moments to spare. Damn, we’re getting good at this travelling thing (touch wood!). So anyway, art lovers will know all about Florentine ar ... read more

Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Florence

Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI establis... ... read more

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