Palazzo Pitti Florence Guide
The Palazzo Pitti Florence is a grand 16th century palace which holds several important museums. It’s a fascinating place to visit on a trip to Florence. Here’s everything you must see when visiting.
Palazzo Pitti History
The Palazzo Pitti was originally built for the Florentine banker Luca Pitti. Due to the Palazzo’s scale, Luca Pitti’s heirs struggled to pay for the palace upkeep and the Medici family bought the Palazzo a century later.
The Medici family enlarged the palace and it became the main Medici residence and where Florentine rulers continued to live.
What to see in the Palazzo Pitti Florence
Palatine Gallery
This gallery contains a vast amount of art dating from the Renaissance. They are hung to this day exactly as the Grand Dukes of the 17th and 18th Centuries wished and contain the highest concentration of Raphael’s paintings.
Rooms 4 – 8 feature frescos begun by Pietro da Cortona and finished by his pupil Ciro Ferri in 1666. They showcase the education of a prince by the gods. In room 1 the prince is torn from the love of Venus by Minerva(knowledge) and in the following rooms he is taught science from Apollo, war from Mars and leadership from Jupiter. In the last room Saturn welcomes him to Mount Olympus.
Royal Apartments
The Royal Apartments were built in the 17th century. They are decorated with frescoes by various artists which show members of the Medici family. When the Dukes of Lorraine succeeded the Medici’s, they completly revamped the apartments in a Neo-classical style. Keep your eyes peeled for the Parrot room, which is rather fabulous.
Decorative Art Museum – Museo degli Argenti
These rooms were used by the Medici as their as their summer aparments. The collection features rare examples of all kinds of Roman artefacts. One of the rarest gems of the collection are 16 pietre dure vases which are on show in the Sala Buia, dating from the Byzantine period. If you are a fan of the Byzantine period, I highly recommend a trip to Ravenna.
Costume Museum – Galleria del Costume
These rooms were designed in 1776 by Gaspare Maria Paoletti for the Royal Family. They lived here until the abolition of the monarchy.
This museum showcases the changes in fashion from the late 18th century until the 1920’s.
Gallery of Modern Art – Galleria d’Arte Moderna
The paintings in these rooms span from 1784 to 1924. They were collected by the Dukes of Lorraine to decorate the palace. Look out for the two paintings by Camille Pissaro.
Palazzo Pitti Prices:
€16 for a regular ticket.
€2 for a reduced ticket.
Boboli Gardens
This is Florence’s largest public park, and you could also say it’s the grandest.
A year after they bought the Palazzo Pitti, the Medici Family started creating the Boboli Gardens in 1550. The vistas show fantastic views over Florence and they are a brilliant way to spend a few hours in the Italian sunshine.
Check out where else in Italy and Europe is best to visit in September from fellow blogger Sam.
