Just beside and slightly behind the statue of Leopold II of Tuscany in “Piazza XX Settembre” you can see an artistic bee house, with a perfectly designed door with hinges and lock.
Heraldic bees have always been a symbol of industriousness and, in a later period, of some Napoleonic heritage. Four larger bees are at the door, while twelve more appear on the side.See also: Leopold II of Tuscany - Forlorn Grand Duke
18 comments:
These are great VP. Love seeing them.
What a great piece of art!
What a nice detail ! Made me wonder whether there was a kind of message to be transmitted through this.
Please have a good Wednesday.
daily athens
Napoleon did like his bees. The way he depicted them, they looked quite nice. I also like these here.
That is an interesting detail, VP. Bees = industriousness. That association is pretty universal.
The bee house does look nice. Many cultures revere the bee. BZzzZZZzzz!! MB
Heraldic bees! Wonderful pictures of something totally new to me. Thanks!
No time to research now but weren't bees the symbol of a great family (well before Napoleon's time) in Italy, a family that gave the world a pope?
This is great!
@ ciel - I doubt that the Barberini family, even if of Tuscan origin, had anything to do with our city.
About Francesco I de' Medici the History of the Medici family says: His personal coat-of-arms, a swarm of bees around the queen bee without a sting and the two mottoes, “Maiestate tantum” and “Pacis et finium tutela”, signify his intolerance of all forms of violence.
But our Leopold II was a Habsburg-Lorraine, not a Medici.
I like bees! :)
It's such an interesting symbol!
Thanks for sharing.Hey, an impressive blue sky in this pictures!I loved the contrast colours!
Léia
What an interesting history detail! There are so many things I do not know...
VP, my daughter Susie would be pleased for you to put her benches on your blog. Thanks for asking.
The bees are so cute! Reminds me of the bees that always go after Winnie the Pooh ;-D
But where is the honey ;)
Very attractive, more so than the ordinary bee skeps beekeepers have here.
Wonderful details! Well spotted, VP.
Nice details, I recently finished a novel about bees.
I can't believe I had forgotten it was the Barberinis.
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