The grand palace commissioned by the Florentine banker Luca Pitti, which dominates the Oltrarno district with its imposing size, is attributed to a design by Filippo Brunelleschi. Its construction spanned over four centuries around the original central body, consisting of seven windows on two floors. The palace was the residence of three dynasties, the Medici, the Lorena, and the Savoia, and only in modern times has it been designated to house three prestigious collections: the Galleria Palatina, the Tesoro dei Granduchi, and the Galleria d’Arte Moderna.

For about three centuries, until the annexation of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany to the Kingdom of Italy in 1859, the palace was the setting for the most important events of the Medici family and later the Asburgo-Lorena family starting from 1736. The Galleria Palatina is housed, in its most important part, in the six rooms facing Palazzo Pitti and in those at the back, which formed the winter apartment of the Medici grand dukes in the north wing. These rooms, which fell into disuse, were used to display, starting from the late 18th century, the most important paintings (then about 500) in Palazzo Pitti, largely from the collections of the Medici family.

TESORO DEI GRANDUCHI
A rich collection of decorative arts in the sumptuous Summer Apartment of the Medici. The Tesoro dei Granduchi (formerly known as the “Museo degli Argenti”) is located on the ground floor and mezzanine of Palazzo Pitti, occupying the spaces of what was once the Summer Apartment of the Medici family. The walls, entirely frescoed on the occasion of the marriage between Ferdinando II de’ Medici and Vittoria della Rovere (1637), are one of the first examples of quadrature and “suspended” elements in Florence. It houses the precious “Tesoro dei Granduchi”: vases in semi-precious stones, rock crystals, ambers, and ivories.

GALLERIA PALATINA
The Medici painting collections in an exuberant setting of frames, furnishings, stuccoes, silks, and baroque skies. The Galleria Palatina and the Royal and Imperial Apartments occupy the entire noble floor of Palazzo Pitti, which was once the Medici and then Lorraine residence, before becoming the residence of the Kings of Italy from 1865 to 1919. The sumptuous Picture Gallery was established between the late 18th and early 19th centuries by the Lorraine, who placed around 500 selected works in the reception rooms from the masterpieces of the main Medici collections. It is an extraordinary collection, which includes the largest concentration of Raffaello’s works in the world, as well as paintings by Tiziano, Tintoretto, Caravaggio, and Rubens.

GALLERIA D’ARTE MODERNA
Paintings and sculptures from Neoclassicism to the 1930s: the greatest interpreters of Italian art in the sumptuous residence of the Grand Dukes of Lorena. The Galleria d’Arte Moderna is located in the former residence of the Lorraine family on the second floor of Palazzo Pitti, offering a magnificent view of both Florence and the Giardino di Boboli. Its collections of sculptures and paintings range from the late 18th century to the early decades of the 20th century and continue to grow today with donations and acquisitions.

MUSEO DELLA MODA E DEL COSTUME
New exhibition featuring a selection of over 50 garments and numerous accessories. The Museo della Moda e del Costume (formerly known as the “Galleria del Costume”) is located in the Palazzina della Meridiana, attached to the southern wing of Palazzo Pitti. Founded in 1983, it is the first Italian state museum dedicated to the history of fashion and its social significance. Overall, the collection housed includes fashion garments and accessories from the 18th century to the present day, as well as a fascinating collection of stage costumes from famous films, theater, and opera productions worn by Italian and international cinema and entertainment stars.