Chiesa di Orsanmichele in Florence

You're standing at Orsanmichele, on Via Calzaiuoli, right between the Cathedral and the Palazzo della Signoria. Take a good look at its shape. For a church it's an odd one: a tall, three-storey cube with no bell tower and no battlements. That's because it didn't start out as a church at all. The name comes from Orto di San Michele, Saint Michael's kitchen garden, where a small chapel once stood.