Florence symbol - The truth on the red lily - Your Contact in Florence (2024)

The symbols on Palazzo Vecchio

It’s almost impossible not noticingall the symbols painted on the facade of Palazzo Vecchio. In the severe, intimidating facade of this Medieval “castle”, they are the only colorful decoration. So why all these symbols, isn’t there just one Florence symbol? Wait a second, it’s ninesymbols actually, repeating themselves. In a city with two millennia of history, it’s normal to see as many symbols. And yes, among them, is the main Florence symbol: a red lily on a white background. Yes, but a red lily doesn’t exist in nature. And what do the other symbols mean? Let’s shed some light on this…

Florence symbol

Florence symbolhas been a lily since the 11th century, when Florentine knights participated inthe first Crusade. But actually, the lily was white. And it was not even a lily… The typical flower of Florence is the iris. And indeed, if you look at the picture, the symbol looks much more like an iris than a lily… So why do we think it is a lily? Because in Florentine dialectgiaggiolo(iris) is very similar to giglio (lily). Someone got confused and the thing went viral.Anyway, why were the colors flipped? We have to go back to the 13th century, when Florence was the battlefield between Guelphs and Ghibellines. The two parties had an alternance in ruling Florence, until the Guelphs took over. Since the original Florence symbol was associated to the Ghibellines, the Guelphs decided to cut with the past and flip the colors.

The other symbols

The St George crossis the symbol of the “People of Florence”. It was first used around 1250. That’s when the Guilds started to rise up against the Guelph and Ghibelline Lords. Merchants wanted to participate more in the government of the city. The Captain of the People was choosen among the Guilds and he led an internal army to keep or restore order in Florence when needed… and with the feuds between Guelph and Ghibelline families, I think it was quite often.

Florence conquered the city of Fiesole in 1125. Fiesole, an Etruscan city on the hills North of Florence, had progressively lost ground and became part of a larger city-state. Since at that time the symbol of Fiesole had a white background, while Florence symbol had a red one (colors had not yet been flipped) this symbol ideally represents the union of the two cities.

This is the symbol of the Guelph party, final winner of the 13th century political fights inFlorence. It represents and eagle clawing at a dragon.

St Peter’s keys are the symbol of the Papacy. The Guelph party was on the Pope’s side, while the Ghibellines supported the Holy Roman Emperors. The symbol represents the alliance of the Republic of Florence with the Papacy.

This is a blue symbol with a golden inscription: libertas. Libertas is Latin for freedom, but here it means “independence”. The Priori delle Arti (priors of the guilds) were elected to take care of the government and had to be independent (ideally…).

Symbol of Carlo d’Angiò, named by the Pope to be the authority guaranteeing the peace between Guelphs and Ghibellines. As such, he could control the Priors and the government. As you can notice in this symbol and in the next onewe havethe “lily of France” or Fleur de lis, which is the traditional symbol of the French royal dynasty. Not only Carlo d’Angiò was a relative of the dynasty, but also the Republic of Florence was traditionally allied with France and you will see this symbol very often in Florence (it is even in the Medici coat of arms).

This is the symbol of Roberto d’Angiò, who succeeded Carlo in guaranteeing the peace in Florence.