Sunday 19 December 2010

Getting plastered

This one was a surprise- The absurdity of the idea tickled me, but the subject is rather obscure so I wasn't sure anyone would take it- but, Reader's Digest did, and it's in the latest issue.
Have I ever mentioned that I once did a bit of studying of art history, and some of that in Florence? (Yes, several times- shut up!)
The Palazzo Vecchio in that town is a rather marvellous building- most people might recognise it as the place where Anthony Hopkins killed the Italian police chief in the movie Hannibal-but it is also where some people believe, hidden behind frescoes in one of the halls, is a long lost masterpiece by Mr Da Vinci.
So- here's my take on it.

The Palazzo Vecchio has a lot of things worth seeing that aren't hidden- I particularly liked the map room, which contains maps for the world as it was known in the 16th century. I was rather taken by the map of the UK, and how, for some reason, one of the most prominent towns marked on it was Basingstoke. I thought that perhaps the Medici family were shareholders in the AA (the Automobile Association headquarters being based there). But then one of my chums who seems to be an expert in that metropolis pointed out that it was probably to do with the wool industry at the time- but he's originally from Norfolk so he can't be trusted.

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