Museo di Palazzo Davanzati

The museum

The Palazzo Davanzati houses the Palazzo Davanzati Museum, also known as the Museum of the Ancient Florentine House. Considered a national artistic heritage since 1901, it was inaugurated as a State Museum in 1956.

The history

The former 14th-century residence of the Davizzi merchants and bankers, the building is still an excellent example of 14th-century local architecture. After having been the residence of the Davizzi family, the Palazzo was the residence of the Ufficiali della Decima, then of the Bartolini family and, in 1578, was sold to Bernardo Davanzati, a Florentine historian and man of letters. When the last member of that family died in 1838, the Palazzo was tampered with until 1904 when the antiquarian Elia Volpi bought it and restored it, enhancing the original features of the 14th-century residence and building a suitable itinerary for the exhibition of works of art and local furnishings. Thus, the Palazzo became an example of the Florentine house.

When the State acquired the building and opened a museum there in 1956, its rooms were fitted out with works from the storerooms of the Florentine Galleries and others from donations. There are mainly paintings, furniture and household objects.

The artworks

• The decorated cicle of the Chatelaine of Vergy (detail), circa 1350, Anonymous (14th century)
• The wall painting in the Room of the Impannate (part.), XIV century, Anonymous (14th century)
• The Game of Civettino (birth tray), mid-15th century, Giovanni di Ser Giovanni detto “Lo Scheggia”
• Triumph of Love, 1450, Giovanni di Ser Giovanni detto “Lo Scheggia”
• FLOUNCE of needle lace, 1690 -1710, Venetian production

Photo: Palazzo Davanzati, Florence