Ville Medicee
The Medici villas are of rural architectural complexes have acquired in various ways to the Medici family between the 15th and 17th centuries around Florence and Tuscany.
In addition to places of rest and recreation they represented the "reggia" summer on the territories administered by doctors and agricultural centre of economic activities of the area where they were sitting.
The Medici Villa at Careggi is one of the oldest among the villas belonging to the family Doctors . Is located in the suburb of Hill slightly Careggi in Florence, in via Gaetano Pieraccini 17. The favourite residence of doctors because of its proximity to the city, I was born and died Lorenzo the magnificent (1448-1492), who inherited the House from grandfather after the brief period of Government of his father Piero the Gouty. Lorenzo elected Careggi as his residence and here I did gather the circle of the Platonic Academy, organizing cultural and artistic Center in the villa of the first Renaissance par excellence. The courtyard is attributed to Michelozzo as Pontormo and Bronzino decorations it is unfortunately no trace. Between 1617 and 1621, under the direction of Giulio Parigi, ionic Lodge were built, the toilet on the first floor, the little Grotto and the ground floor Hall. Passed to private citizens in 1780, was sold to the Arcispedale di Santa Maria Nuova in 1936. The villa has an Italian-style garden, overlooking the main façade, is a large Park that surrounds it on all sides.
Villa Medicea di Careggi
The Villa Medicea La Petraia is located in the hills of Castle, in via Petraia 40 in Florence. Is considered to be one of the most beautiful and celebrated Medici villas, situated in a panoramic position overlooking the city of Florence. An ancient fortified building, which still remains the great Tower, was enlarged in the late 16th century to build the current House and surrounding land was dug out to put it in the beautiful garden and terraces.
The courtyard of the villa, covered in the nineteenth century, is decorated with frescoes by Baldassare Franceschini and of Cosimo Daddi. The famous bronze sculpture by Giambologna depicting Venus-Fiorenza, who completed the homonymous fountain in ancient times in the garden of the villa di Castello, is now located inside to keep them.
In July of 2012 have come to Villa della Petraia survivor 14 lunettes by Giusto Utens portraying the Medici villas. The famous paintings, made by the Flemish artist for a living room of the Villa di Artimino commissioned by Ferdinand I, completed the restoration, are exhibited in three rooms on the ground floor of the Villa.
Villa Medicea La Petraia
The Villa La Quiete is located in Castle Hill in Florence, at the foot of Monte Morello. Considered among the most important buildings on the outskirts of Florence, takes its name from a fresco by Giovanni da San Giovanni entitled the stillness that dominates the winds (1632). The oldest part of the villa is that around the first courtyard, where she was leaning against the Church of the Montalve. Date back to the 19th century, the salon, the buildings on the East and the second altanza, which balances that at one time the center of the villa, creating an effect not aligned to the symmetry of the Italian garden. The Church, designed by Pier Francesco Silvani commissioned by Vittoria della Rovere, has combined coat of arms on the exterior façade Doctors-Della Rovere, above the portico.
The theater leads to della Robbia Hall where you can admire two lunettes by Giovanni and Marco della Robbia and a glazed ceramic frieze coming, from the convent of San Jacopo di Ripoli via della Scala, home where the Montalve of city lived for almost a century, from 1794 to 1886. In this show, formerly called "music room", it kept the coronation of the Virgin and Saints by Sandro Botticelli and his workshop and The mystical marriage of Saint Catherine of Michele Tosini.
The frescoed in 1726 by Benedetto Fortini and garden are finally living testimonies of the presence of another Medical "Mistress", the last of the family: Anna Maria Louise (1667-1743), Electress Palatine. Back in Florence chose Villa La Quiete as pickup location
The formal Italian garden slopes down to the South and is structured symmetrically with geometric flower gardens, enclosed by hedges and adorned with fountains. A grand staircase provides access from the terrace of the villa, where they planted some magnolia trees, the terrace below; between the ramps is a small cave.
Villa Medicea La Quiete
The Medici Villa at Poggio a Caiano, also called amber, is one of the most famous Medici villas and is located in the municipality of Poggio a Caiano, Prato. The villa is perhaps the best example of architecture commissioned by Lorenzo the magnificent, in this case to Giuliano da Sangallo towards 1480. Not surprisingly it is a private building, where there are elements that made then as a model for the future development of the typology of the villas: interpenetration between inside and outside using filters like the lodges, symmetrical distribution of environments around in a central room (space "centrifugal"), a dominant position in the landscape, conscious recovery of classical architectural elements.
With Lorenzo's death in 1492 the villa were still largely unfinished and suffered a real arrest between 1495 and 1513, due to the exile of the Medici from Florence. Between 1513 and 1520, after the return of the Medici, the work was carried out on the initiative of the son of Lorenzo the magnificent, John, meanwhile, became Pope Leo X, always at the time of Leo X Salon frescoes were begun by the greatest masters Florentines: Pontormo, Andrea del Sarto and Franciabigio. The paintings were completed about fifty years later by Alessandro Allori. The villa of Poggio a Caiano remained the residence of the Medici and, besides hosting numerous personalities, was the scene of important events of their dynastic history. In particular the villa were received before reaching Florence foreign brides of family members, who received the homage of the Florentine nobility: the case of Joan of Austria, first wife of Francis I and Christina of Lorraine, wife of Ferdinand I. We celebrated here, among others, marriages between Alessandro de ' Medici and Marguerite of Austria (1536), by Cosimo I and Eleonora of Toledo (1539) and Francis I and Bianca Cappello already his lover (1579). Its white and Francis in this villa also found death, for reasons not fully clarified and with suspicion of poisoning.
When Florence became capital, Vittorio Emanuele II did rearrange the villa: were built new stables and some ground floor rooms were redecorated, like the billiard room or the Hall of Lunches. With Vittorio arrived at Poggio also the "Rosina", Rosa Vercellana, a commoner and the King's mistress and then his morganatic wife. Testimony of this latest love story that had like teatro la villa are the respective bedrooms of the King and his wife.
Surrounding the Villa are some buildings such as the Chapel, where is the Pietà with Saints Cosmas and Damian, painted in 1560 by Giorgio Vasari, the Kitchen made in the early 17th century and the neoclassical bullpen for plants (or lemon) "with preserves of water "by Poccianti (1825). Of great interest are the gardens that surround the Villa, and especially to the 19th century.
Villa Medicea di Poggio a Caiano
