The museum attached to the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, now a modern center specialized in restoration, is a direct continuation of the artistic manufacturing characterized by the processing of hard stones, which was officially founded in 1588 by Ferdinando I de’ Medici.
The most prestigious creations, often given as gifts by the Florentine grand dukes, are preserved in palaces and museums throughout Europe, while in the production workshops, unfinished works or pieces resulting from subsequent modifications and dismantlings remain, along with what survived the dispersals of the nineteenth century, which ended in 1882 with the museumization of the collection.
The museum was renovated, based on a project by Adolfo Natalini, in 1995.