FLORENCE: TREE OF PEACE MEMORIAL
The bronze Tree of Life took centre stage during the recent 30th anniversary commemoration ceremonies of the tragic bomb attack that took place in the heart of Florence in 1993. The 4.40m-high tree by sculptor Andrea Roggi stands in Via Georgofili, on the spot where the stolen vehicle that held the bomb was parked. The evocative sculpture replaces the succession of living olive Trees of Peace which did not survive due to the lack of light and space in the narrow alleyway between the Uffizi and the Torre dei Pulci, seat of the Georgofili Academy.
The bomb, planted by the Mafia in an attempt to coerce the Italian government into granting concessions to Cosa Nostra members serving prison sentences, killed or injured some 35 people and caused extensive damage. The Uffizi, the Vasari Corridor, Palazzo Vecchio and the Church of Santo Stefano al Ponte were all devastated by the blast and many paintings in the Uffizi collection were badly damaged.
The Georgofili Academy which was set up in 1753 (the first scientific institute in Europe to concentrate on agricultural studies) was razed to the ground.
The Torre dei Pulci has since been rebuilt and carries an inscription beside the door of a poem written by one of the victims, nine-year old Nadia Nencioni.
