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Florence, Italy is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance. One of the most significant centers of medieval European trade and finance, the city today is a favorite tourist destination renowned for its stunning collection of Renaissance art, architecture, and monuments.

Browse this gallery and take a tour of Florence's beautiful buildings and their astonishing interiors.

▲Pictured is the Florence Cathedral in winter. Arguably the most iconic structure of the city's skyline, the building is dominated by Filippo Brunelleschi's dome. Brunelleschi is considered to be a founding father of Renaissance architecture.

▲When inside the cathedral, peer up at the dome and admire Giorgio Vasari's fresco (detail pictured), begun in 1568 and completed by Federico Zuccari in 1579.

▲Florence, in Italy's Tuscany region, is the birthplace of the Renaissance.

▲The Basilica of the Holy Cross is the city's principal Franciscan Church, and the largest Franciscan Church in the world.

▲The basilica's impressive interior is especially noted for its 16 chapels, many of them decorated with frescoes by Giotto.

▲St. Minias on the Mountain is perched on one of the highest points in the city. Built in 1018, this is one of the most scenic churches in Italy.

▲An interior highlight is the exquisite freestanding Cappella del Crocefisso (Chapel of the Crucifix), designed by Michelozzo in 1448.

▲One of the largest churches in the city and one of the oldest, having been consecrated in 393, Basilica of St. Lawrence was the parish church of the Medici family.

▲The basilica's interior decoration and sculpture is by Donatello, while the Laurentian Library is by Michelangelo. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

▲The Medici Chapels are two structures at the Basilica of St. Lawrence, dating from the 16th and 17th centuries. (Photo: Flickr/CC BY-NC 2.0)

▲Pictured is the strikingly ornate chapel of the Princes ceiling.

▲The main gate of the Florence Baptistery is known as the Gates of Paradise, created by Florentine goldsmith and sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti between 1425 and 1452.

▲The rectangular bronze reliefs depict scenes from the Old Testament.

▲One of Italy's—and the world's—most important museums, the Uffizi Gallery contains works by Leonardo da Vinci, Titian, Rembrandt, and Raphael, among other celebrated artists.

▲You can spend several hours wandering the Uffizi Gallery admiring its priceless collection of artworks, particularly from the period of the Italian Renaissance.

▲Dating back to 1481, the Basilica of the Holy Spirit is a superb example of Renaissance architecture.

▲The basilica features no less than 38 side chapels, the most significant being the Bini-Capponi Chapel.

▲The National Museum of Bargello is located in Palazzo del Bargello (pictured on the right), the oldest public building in Florence.

▲Bargello houses a remarkable collection of Renaissance sculpture and works of art.

▲Consecrated in 1420, the Basilica of Santa Maria Novella is Florence's landmark Dominican church.

▲The basilica's stained-glass windows date from the 14th and 15th centuries, the light from which bathe the interior with a rainbow wash.

▲The octagonal Florence Baptistery, also known as the Baptistery of Saint John, is one of the oldest buildings in the city. Parts of it date back as far as 1059.

▲Pictured is the extraordinary mosaic-covered interior of the baptistery's octagonal dome.

▲Michelangelo's "kneeling windows" distinguish the exterior of the Medici Riccardi Palace.

▲One of the many artistic wonders found within the palace is the Magi Chapel. Here you can admire Benozzo Gozzoli's 'Journey of the Magi' (pictured).

▲The Old Palace looms over the Piazza della Signoria. Its Torre di Arnolfo, or Arnolfo’s tower, is one of the most imposing medieval towers remaining in Florence. (Photo: Wikimedia/CC BY-SA 4.0)

▲The richly decorated interior of the Old Palace features frescoes of Austrian cities by Vasari.

▲The famous marble and bronze Fountain of Neptune designed by Baccio Bandinelli is an architectural focus.

▲Florence's city square is recognized for its Column of Abundance and triumphal arch.

▲When the crowds become a little overbearing, head for the Boboli Gardens, a lovely park set behind the Pitti Palace.

▲Purchased by the Medici family in 1549, this is now the largest museum complex in Florence.

▲Pictured is the lavish, gilded interior of the Pitti Palace. The Jupiter Room with its lunette frescoes and stucco work by Pietro da Cortona is quite dazzling.

▲The city's medieval stone bridge —the Old Bridge—is one of Florence's most popular tourist draws.

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A Florence "must-see," Michelangelo's 'David' dates back to between 1501 and 1504, and is considered a masterpiece of Renaissance sculptor.