Description of the attraction
It was originally a chapel of the Servite Order, built outside the city's second fortress wall (1250). The church acquired its modern look in the years 1444-1481 thanks to the efforts of such architects as Michelozzo, Pagno Portinari and Antonio Manetti. The facade portico is decorated with Corinthian columns. The interior of the church was changed in the middle of the 17th century.
The central portal of the church leads to the small Monastery of the Vows (1447), a scenic space decorated with frescoed lunettes by Rosso Fiorentino, Pontormo and Andrea del Sarto (1511-1513).
The church houses one of the most revered city shrines - the image of the Virgin Mary, begun in 1252 by a monk, and finished, according to legend, by an angel. This fresco is on the left at the entrance to the church, the newlyweds usually come to it, they put a bunch of flowers and ask for a long and happy marriage.
The Church of Santissima Annunziata is located in the square of the same name, in the center of which stands the equestrian statue of Ferdinand I de Medici. It is paired with the statue of Cosimo I in Piazza della Signoria; it was also written by Giambologna, but completed by Takka in 1608. Takka is also the author of two fountains depicting grotesque sea monsters and placed in strict symmetry on both sides of this square.
