Pitti Palace

Piazza de Pitti, 1, 50125Florence, Italy

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Introduction

The Pitti Palace, built in 1487, is a huge Renaissance palace commissioned by banker Luca Pitti and later purchased by the Medici family. It served as the residence of the city's rulers for hundreds of years until it was donated to the country by the Savoy family in 1919. The front of the palace is 205 meters long and 36 meters high, built with massive stone blocks. The only decoration is the lion head sculptures between the window brackets on the ground floor. The protruding wings were built during the Lorraine period. Passing through the arched gate, you can enter the Ammannati courtyard, from where you can see the higher Boboli Hill behind it. The second floor of the palace houses the royal residence and the Palatine Gallery, and the third floor is the modern art museum. There are also the Silver Museum and the Carriage Museum. Today, the Pitti Palace is one of the world's famous art galleries. It houses a large collection of paintings, jewelry, and sculptures, including 11 works by Raphael. The Palatine Gallery of the Pitti Palace contains precious paintings by artists such as Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, and Rubens.