Spini Feroni Palace

The bulk of Palazzo Spini Feroni dominates Piazza Santa Trinita. Built in the late thirteenth century, it may have been designed by Lapo Tedesco. The three-storey building has been altered several times. Its smooth pietra forte walls are topped with battlements and pierced by arched windows. In 1824 the original tower and the so-called Arco dei Pizzicotti, overlooking the Arno, were demolished. The latter’s name, meaning the Arch of Pinches, referred to its narrow, dimly lit passage, where boys would harass women unfortunate enough to pass through. In 1865, when Florence became capital of the Kingdom of Italy, Palazzo Spini Feroni housed the city hall because the national government had taken over Palazzo Vecchio. Only restorations in the late nineteenth century returned the building to its medieval appearance. Today it belongs to the Ferragamo fashion house, which has a shop here and a museum dedicated to its founder, Salvatore Ferragamo. In the museum, in the palace’s basement, you can see Beatrice’s Well. It is dedicated to Dante’s muse, who is said to have met the poet near Ponte Santa Trinita.