Blood on the Marble
A pope's murder plot at Mass, a preacher burned where he'd burned the city's art, a poet sentenced to the flames. Florence's beauty had a body count — and every crime is in the records.
What You'll Experience
Plan your walk
Know the route before you buy
- Starts at
- Introduction
- Ends at
- The Reveal
- Walking plan
- 1h · ~0.7 miles
- Schedule
- Start, pause, and resume anytime
Included in the app
- Professional narration
- GPS-triggered stops
- Downloadable tour audio
- Ask the Historian Q&A
- Optional end-of-tour reveal
- All 11 story stops
A taste of what you'll hear
11 stops, each with its own story. Here's a preview.
"You're in Florence — the most beautiful city human beings ever built, and one of the bloodiest. People come here for the art. Nobody warns them the art has a body count."
"Look at that grand arched porch off the corner of the square — the tall stone loggia crowded with statues, people wandering underneath, taking pictures. Your brain reads it instantly as an elegant open-air sculpture gallery, free, in the sun."
"You made it — from a murder at the altar all the way to a church full of the people this city couldn't quite kill off for good. That's the darker half of Florence, and you walked straight through it. Nicely done."
Tour itinerary
Every stop on this walk
Explore the route before you go. Each stop has its own story preview, location details, and place in the larger tour.
- 11IntroductionYou're in Florence — the most beautiful city human beings ever built, and one of the bloodiest. People come here for the art.43.7731, 11.2560 Read this stop
- 22The Duomo — Murder at the AltarYou're under the Duomo — Santa Maria del Fiore, the great striped cathedral with the brick-red dome.43.7731, 11.2560 Read this stop
- 33The Madonna de' Ricci — The Dung and the ShrineThe small church tucked along this street is Santa Maria de' Ricci, and it is one of the only churches on earth that exists because a man...43.7714, 11.2565 Read this stop
- 44Casa di Dante — Sentenced to the FireThis narrow lane, this tower house they call the Casa di Dante. I'll be honest with you — it's a reconstruction, a museum built where...43.7710, 11.2570 Read this stop
- 55Piazza della Signoria — The Bonfire and the BurningYou've walked into the Piazza della Signoria — the political heart of Florence for seven hundred years, and one of the loveliest open...43.7696, 11.2558 Read this stop
- 66Loggia dei Lanzi — The Gallery of MurdersLook at that grand arched porch off the corner of the square — the tall stone loggia crowded with statues, people wandering underneath,...43.7694, 11.2555 Read this stop
- 77Palazzo Vecchio — Hanged from the WindowsThat blocky stone fortress with the tall off-center tower is the Palazzo Vecchio, the Old Palace, the seat of Florence's government for...43.7693, 11.2560 Read this stop
- 88The Bargello — The House of the RopeThis severe battlemented palace with the tower is the Bargello. Today it holds the greatest collection of sculpture in Italy — Donatello's...43.7702, 11.2585 Read this stop
- 99Le Stinche — Five Centuries Under the Opera HouseYou're standing in front of the Teatro Verdi — a working opera house, where Florence stages Verdi and Puccini, tragedies sung by people in...43.7697, 11.2602 Read this stop
- 1010Santa Croce — The Tombs Are the LivesYou've reached Santa Croce — the enormous church with the marble front, facing the wide square.43.7686, 11.2621 Read this stop
- 1111The RevealYou made it — from a murder at the altar all the way to a church full of the people this city couldn't quite kill off for good.43.7686, 11.2621 Read this stop
Stories first
Every stop is built around people, conflict, ambition, and consequences—not a plaque read aloud.
Most of it is true. The extra mischief is just a wink at the end, but the story is what carries the walk.
Have questions? Just ask.
Curious about something you heard? Want to know more about a place? Ask us anything — we have a lot to say. It's more fun when it's a conversation.
Ready?
Download the app, head to the starting point, and press play. The stories start themselves.
Get the AppBefore you go
Quick answers
How much is this tour?
$9.99 as a one-time purchase in the iOS app. The Florence city pack is $14.99 and includes every currently available tour in the city.
Can I use it with spotty cell service?
Download the tour audio on Wi-Fi before leaving. Cached narration plays without streaming; map tiles and other online features may still need a connection.
Do I have to start at a specific time?
No. Start when it suits you, pause for a detour or meal, and resume later. Check the opening hours of any venue you personally plan to enter.
Are admission tickets included?
The purchase covers the Bad Historian audio experience. Transportation, food, and admission to third-party attractions are not included.
Other Florence Tours
Historic Center
Florence Dressed the World
The city that invented fashion twice — the medieval wool and silk guilds that funded the Renaissance, then Ferragamo, Gucci, Pucci, and the 1951 show that made 'Made in Italy.' Two inventions, six centuries apart, on the same small grid of streets.
Duomo
Florence in a Mile
The Duomo, the David, the bridge — a straight walk through the heart of Florence, with the one insane true story behind every icon. Where the Renaissance started, and why any of it is still here.
Duomo
How to Build the Impossible
A reject block of marble became the David; a dome that shouldn't stand still holds; a 1401 contest built a genius by making him lose. A physics heist across the Renaissance, on foot, in about a mile.
San Lorenzo
The Family That Owned Florence
The Medici started as bankers and ended up owning a republic, a papacy, and immortality — four popes, two queens of France, a secret half-mile skybridge over the whole city. And the last of them gave every masterpiece to Florence forever, on one condition: none of it could ever leave.
Blood on the Marble
$9.99 · one-time