The monumentale complex of the Fortezza da Basso, built on the
outskirts of a mediaeval city from a design by the great architect
Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, with the help of Pierfranceco
da Viterbo, is now the main exhibition centre in Florence, where
all the most important trade fairs and shows are held.
A cyclopic building with powerful bastions bristling with turrets,
full of narrow passages, parapet walks and secret passages, the
Fortress of San Giovanni Battista (called after St. John the Baptist,
the Patron Saint of the city), is also a wonderful example of
Renaissance architecture: built on a pentagonal plan, the shape
of a human figure can be perfectly inscribed within its perimeter.
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The facade of the outer walls is carried out in round diamond-pointed
projecting stone ashlars, perhaps inspired by the coat of arms
of the Medici family, who ordered its construction.
This sophisticated military machine, a splendid example of the
celebrated Fortresses built by the Sangallo family, was constructed
in record time in 1534, during the reign of Duke Alessandro and
with the return to power in Florence of the Medici family after
the dramatic seige of 1529-30.
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