Selfies in front of Botticelli's Venus. Closeups of David's manhood. Bottlenecks climbing to the top of the famous Duomo. Back in the halcyon prepandemic times, Florence was struggling with overtourism. And the Uffizi Gallery -- one of the most popular museums in the world -- was at the center of it all.

At its busiest, 12,000 visitors per day passed through, more often than not rushing past the renaissance works of art to snap selfies with the big hitters: Botticelli's Venus, Michelangelo's Holy Family, and Titian's Venus of Urbino.