ARCHITECTURE + AIRBORNE European Travels: PISA + VINCI

The outdoor recreation center has a pretty fantastic list of activities that people of the military community and their families and friends can sign up for. PJ and I have signed up for several of them, including our ski trip to Stubaier Gletscher and our snowshoeing trip. We have also reserved a few other trips in June and July, including ones to Lugano, Portofino, and Croatia.

On Saturday, May 4th, PJ and I traveled to Pisa and Vinci for a day trip with outdoor rec. We began the trip at 6:30 am and arrived in Pisa at around 10:30am. We arrived in the Piazza Dei Miracoli [a UNESCO World Heritage Site] and had a brief tour of the Duomo, which was built in the Pisan Romanesque style and began construction in 1093. The main architect was Buscheto, but Rainaldo, Buschetos successor, designed the façade. Buscheto, the main architect of the Duomo, is buried in the last blind arch on the left side of the façade.

Looking down the nave of the Duomo.

Coffer ceiling

Giovanni Pisano's Pulpit

The crucifix is by Giambologna.
The apse showcases a mosaic
of Christ Pancrator.

Transept crossing with painted
oval dome.

Tomb of Emperor Henry VII

Cappella del SS Sacramento.

We then viewed the exterior of the Romanesque Baptistery, which began construction in 1152 and wasn’t completed for 211 years. This is the largest Baptistery in Italy. The arches along the lower portion are Romanesque [rounded], but the arches along the top are Gothic in design [pointed].

Baptistery

Baptistery entrance.

The left side of the portal depicts the 12 months,
while the right portrays the Apostles, the Harrowing
of Hell, and King David.

A few of us then headed over to climb the Leaning Tower of Pisa. They have made some modifications to the observation levels since 2008, having added a chain link fence around the entire perimeter of the exterior. I was curious, and it seems that a Dutch man jumped over the railing in 2011, which I am assuming is the reason for the 7 or so foot fence around both levels now.

From the entry.

I had to do it.

PJ refused!

PJ and I infront of the tower.

Some fun facts about the Leaning Tower of Pisa:

+ It took over 800 years to complete.

+ It was actually straight for the first 5 years [when only 2 floors were complete].

+ There was a 100-year span when the construction was stopped on the tower. This was because the engineers were hoping the clay would settle and harden so the 14,500 ton tower wouldn’t lean.

+ Many people tried to “fix” the tower to correct the lean, but to no avail.

+ During WWII American soldiers had orders to destroy the leaning tower because they believed it had potential to act as “a potential nest for enemy snipers”. Thank goodness they didn’t!

The leaning tower continues to lean around .2 inches [1.25mm] a year, so it has fallen 1 inch since the last time I saw it; I hardly noticed. The climb up is a strange sensation. The way the tower leans forces the visitor to walk from the inside to the outside of the steps, which is clearly marked by recessed indentations on the stone steps.

From the lower observation level.

The Leaning Tower was used as a
bell tower. It is lined with bells along the top.

The leaning staircase.

The core of the tower.

Galileo and the Leaning Tower of Pisa

Galileo was born in Pisa. He later briefly attended school and taught at the University of Pisa. Supposedly, one of his most famous experiments was done from the top of the Leaning Tower. He dropped several balls of different masses from the top of the tower and proved that, regardless of their mass, all objects fall at the same rate.

I have found a few different variations of this story online, so how much truth is behind it is uncertain, but an interesting story nonetheless.

VINCI

Vinci, which is to the east of Pisa, was the next stop on our day trip. It is a small town where Leonardo da Vinci was born, hence his name Leonardo FROM Vinci. The first stop was a 30-minute walk to see La Casa Natale di Leonardo; the house where Leonardo was born. It is an old farmhouse overlooking olive groves and rolling hills. We did not tour the interior because PJ and I wanted to get back to the main town to walk through the Museo Leonardiano, but I believe there is a 2 euro cover to tour the house.

View from Leonardo's home.

Wild flowers along the trail to get
to Leonardo's home.

Casa Natale di Leonardo.

Casa Natale di Leonardo

The next stopping point was the Museo Leonardiano, which is a museum dedicated to Leonardo da Vinci and his work. The museum is broken into 2 parts, one being at the main museum in Palazzina Uzielli and the other inside of the Castello dei Conti Guidi. The museum showcases things like building-site machinery, textile manufacturing technology and mechanical clocks, while the castle showcases machines and models of war based inventions, architecture, flight, mechanics, optics, movement, etc… Photography wasn’t allowed within the museum, but their website showcases a lot of mechanisms.