On this particular day, the family visited two very different museums. The first was the Stibbert Museum. Firearms and armour fascinated him, and so he used his personal fortune to amass one of the largest collections in existence. The collection dates from the 15th to the 19th centuries and has pieces from Italian, German, French, Japanese and Middle East origin. In addition to his large armour collection, he also had some art, ceramics and clothing pieces. Most interesting among them was the actual robe worn by Napoleon for his coronation as King of Italy in the year 1805. Notice the "N" insignia throughout the decorative embroidery.
Next up was the Museo del Calcio. The Soccer Museum! The beginning of soccer is said to be right here in Florence. In fact, next month we'll attend the Calcio Storico Fiorentino which is a recreation of those first ever games in the 15th century. It was a bit different back then, more like rugby, and we're told to expect some fierce battles with lots of broken noses and bloodied bodies. More on that though next month. As for the more civilized game that exists today, the Italian National Team was established, and still practices here in Florence. We got a chance to tour the training center and museum which lie just on the outskirts of town. Among the memorabilia are the World Cup trophies they won in 1934, 1938, 1982, and 2006 (pictured below).
