The Courtyard
Just inside the main entrance is the first courtyard of Palazzo Vecchio.At the center is a replica of a sculpture of a small cherub with a dolphin by Andrea del Verrocchio, the artist whose workshop Leonardo da Vinci was apprenticed in (the original - dated 1470 - is in the building museum). The courtyard was added in 1453 and was designed by Michelozzo. What's interesting to note are the frescoed walls surrounding this smallish court.In 1565, Duke Cosimo I's son, Francesco I, got married to Joan of Austria.How to make the bride feel at home in a new country? By painting the walls of her new home with scenes of Austrian cities, which is what these (not very well preserved) frescoes represent!