The 1966 Florence Flood: An Eyewitness Account

On November 4, 1966, the Arno River—Florence’s “Bad Boy of 1966”—burst over its banks and flooded the great Renaissance city, submerging churches, businesses, and homes in up to twenty feet of roaring water and leaving behind up to twenty inches of mud. Among the many works damaged were Andrea Pisano’s 1339 bronze doors. Art historians David G. Wilkins and Ann Thomas Wilkins were living in Florence during the flood and will discuss their impressions, show their photos of the devastation, and recount their experiences drying books and distributing aid to Florentines.