Florence, cradle of Renaissance, is indeed a medieval city. Just have a walk around in the city centre and you will easily recognise the narrow and winding streets and the many towers and the houses into which they have later developed.
For the longest time, stairs were considered an inconvenient necessity in architecture. They took up valuable living space, and so they were narrow and steeply rising up: the first flights were normally in stone, after which the steps became of wood to lighten the load.
In order to be clear: in a normal and easy staircase the steps have a rising of 16-18 centimetres; in the centre of Florence, the steps are 22 centimetres!
Believe me, that even if 4 centimetres difference in the figures may seem insignificant, it is very perceptible if you have to ascend 40 steps for the second floor, or 60 for the third or 80 for the forth! It is towards the end of XV century that stairs starts to become larger and more comfortable, but it is still rare.
Think that even the stairs of the Medici palace (in the mansion that Cosimo The Eldest - the richest man of Florence- asked Michelozzo to build for him around 1450) had to be replaced in XVII century because they were considered too tiring.
And it is becasue strairs are very tiring that during the Renaissance, certain rules of ceremony were observed. The more important the visitor was, the earlier along the way would he be met by his host. This way they could ascend together and both of them would be out of puff.
It is only with the end of the XVI century, beginning of the XVII century that stairs become large and monumental: over some metres wide, with treads 50 centimetres deep and rising a mere 12 centimetres. Stairs become another way of measuring power and richness.
So the majority of the houses of the centre of Florence have got narrow and steep steps. Just a few have got a lift that is always understood as a luxury, it doesn’t matter how tiny it is!
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