their offices, or uffizi, were next door. now these offices hold the finest collection of italian paintings anywhere -- the uffizi gallery. each day here, and throughout europe, frustrated tourists who don't study their guidebooks waste precious hours in museum lines. meanwhile, travelers who made a reservation by phone or purchased the city museum pass, as we did, are allowed right in. the uffizi's collection, displayed on one comfortable floor, takes you on a sweep through italian art history from the 12th through the 17th century. gilded gothic altarpieces, like this annunciatiby the sienese master simone martini, must have dazzled the faithful in the 1300s. the stars of the florentine class of 1500 are all here -- leonardo da vinciannunciation is exquisite. michelangelo's holy family shows he can do more than carve statues. and raphael, considered a synthesis of the power of michelangelo and the grace of leonardo, captures a delicate moment in his madonna of the goldfinch. and the collection follows art after the renaissa

here is another painting in the uffizi that shows the unmistakable stamp of leonardo's early work-- theannunciation-- a large panel seven feet long and three feet high painted on a poplar board, as was the custom of the time. the most appealing feature of the painting is the messenger of god, the winged angel. vasari writes that verrocchio stopped painting when he saw the evidence of his young apprentice's ability, but that story is not true. it is more probable that verrocchio decided to concentrate still more on sculpture, which he preferred to painting, after realizing the great talent of the young leonardo. among the sculpture of verrocchio that exists in florence today is a most charming work in the courtyard of the palazzo vecchio, the city hall. the little boy with a dolphin is one of the most famous statues in florence. verrocchio's bronze of david is displayed at the bargello museum, and some believe that leonardo may have been the model for david. that might be true, but leonardo was older than this youthful figure. it is interesting to note david's smile, because some of leon