463 Steps to the Top
Dome Interior
We completed our time in Florence with a trip to the top of the Duomo, Brunelleschi’s dome on the Santa Maria del Fiore. This included carrying our 9 month old son up all 463 steps up to the top of the dome!
On a hot summer day, it was surprisingly cool and comfortable inside on the way up. There are breaks of course, as we walk around the upper interior balconies below the dome. The construction of the octagonal dome is heavy: double walled and massive with nearly 4 million bricks. It was a great way to directly experience the effectiveness of mass walls – they are inherently efficient. Small windows through the walls show just how thick they are.
At the first balcony, looking up at the underside of the dome is amazing. Of course as an architect, I also had to look down and around. On the floor of the dome’s balcony is a series of grooves and small channels, an integrated condensation management system.
View through the wall
Condensation solution
Bell Tower
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Erin Nunes Cooper, AIA, LEED AP is an Architect, Green Building Consultant, and the owner of 
