FLORENTINE, VENETIAN AND SIENESE STAGES
1724 – 1725
IX
Once I had seen beyond Venice, I yearned to see more. It wasn"t that I wanted to return to Mantova. It was that the earthy places I"d heard of because of the Maestro"s perpetual travel—Florence, Rome, Vienna—began to fascinate me. Why could I not go along with him, I wondered. And so I asked him. “My dear Anna,” he said, “I know how shy you are. You would not want to meet so many people.” [Antonia, 1741]
Nestled within the dense core of Florence across from the Orsanmichele, the Cristofori home was barely affected by the Tuscan winter wind that forced its way through the sleeping streets. Orlando Sagredo and Lorenzo Cristofori sat comfortably together before a mellow, gently crackling fire. The room, known and respected by family a
