Event:

Flower Display

When:	May 2009 (annual)
Where:	Piazza della Signoria

May in Florence sees a carpet of flowers covering the main square, Piazza della Signoria, and the area around the neighbouring Uffizi. Perfectly arranged and meticulously tended, the display provides a riot of colour.

Piazza Signoria may be a major tourist spot in the city, flanked by bronze statues and fine Renaissance architecture, but it is also the address of the town hall, whose bell tower presides over it. The bell is only tolled on the most solemn occasions, and in times of crisis: the last time was after the Mafia's bombing of the Uffizi in 1993, and before then it had not been tolled since the 1930s - when the city was ruinously flooded, destroying much precious artwork.