Porta San Niccolò

Porta San Niccolò is part of the walls of Florence and is located in Piazza Giuseppe Poggi, in Oltrarno. Due to its isolated, massive, and slender appearance, it resembles more of a tower today (although in the past, all gates of Florence were like this); in fact, it is sometimes referred to as Torre San Niccolò. From here, the southern circuit began, after the Ponte San Niccolò, and the tower thus served as a defensive point for the Arno to the east, along with the Torre della Zecca on the opposite side. The name derives from the adjacent neighborhood of San Niccolò, located in the eastern part of Oltrarno, and it was built in 1324, possibly designed by Orcagna, during the construction of the last circle of walls. Unlike all the other gates of the city walls, it was not lowered ('scapitozzata') in the sixteenth century because the hill of San Miniato provided natural protection from artillery fire: today, it is the only Florentine gate that preserves its original height; the battlements are not original and date back to the nineteenth century. Near the gate, there was a stop for the Chianti Tramway, which operated between 1890 and 1935 as a connection between Florence, San Casciano Val di Pesa, and Greve in Chianti. Two niches on the side facing the countryside were supposed to hold the statues of two lions, while the coats of arms attached are those of the Florentine Republic. On the rear side, three large arches can be seen, one for each floor, which correspond to the rooms used by the guard soldiers. Just above the arch of the gate is a fresco depicting a Madonna with Child between Saint John the Baptist and Saint Nicholas of Bari (the respective patron saints of the city and the neighborhood) from the fourteenth century. From here, the so-called Rampe del Poggi begin, the stairways designed by architect Giuseppe Poggi to reach Piazzale Michelangelo.