The Uffizi Gallery, which has more than 500 years of history, houses the main collection of Renaissance paintings in the world, including works by Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio, Raphael, Tintoretto, Tiziano, Botticelli , as well as paintings by artists from other nationalities such as Dutch, French and German.
Visiting the gallery is like reading a history book, one of those essential places to visit in Florence even for those who don’t understand much about art.
The wonderful structure of the palace and its decoration alone are worth the tour, a true work of art.
History of the Uffizi Gallery
It is one of the oldest museums in the world, with collections of rich historical importance.
The history of the museum began there in mid-1560. The very important Duke of Florence and maximum authority, Cosimo I de Medici , who belonged to the influential and very wealthy Medici family, asked the architect Giorgio Vasari to build a large palace.
What the Duke wanted was a palace that would serve to house various administrative spaces such as offices for judges, among other people who held an important position in the city government. It is for this reason that it gained the name “Uffizi”, which means “crafts”.
Very smart, the Duke’s idea was to gather people with high positions in one place to facilitate the control of the city. With great care and rich in architectural details, the Galeria dos Ofícios took more than 20 years to complete.
At the time of its completion, Duke Francesco I , son of Cosimo , was in charge . Cosimo’s successor was a lover of the arts. That’s why Francesco decided to house the works of art that the Medici family collected, such as paintings and statues, on the third floor of the palace.
In short, the result of this passion for the arts ended up becoming the Medici family’s private museum.
To summarize, with the end of the Medici family, who left power, it was only in 1769 that the Gallery of the Offices opened its doors to the public. And sure enough, such is its importance, the gallery was the first museum to be opened in Europe.
The rooms of the Uffizi Gallery
With wonderful corridors that are decorated by frescoes on the ceiling, statues and paintings, today the Gallery of the Offices has more than 60 rooms that are distributed in chronological order , with works that begin in the mid-1200s onwards.
Among the most important and famous rooms in the Galeria dos Ofícios are the rooms from the Middle Ages and Renaissance. It is worth noting that some rooms are dedicated especially to the great painters of Italian history such as Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Caravaggio.
On the outside of the museum, around twenty-eight statues adorn the gallery entrance. These are statues that honor talented men in the history of art such as Leonardo da Vinci, Machiavelli, Donatello, Giotto, among others.
The main artworks of the Uffizi Gallery
In addition to paintings, in the Uffizi Gallery you will also find Greek and Roman statues. And even if you’re not an art expert (my case), the tip is to study a little about the main works found in the museum, as well as the artists.
Understanding a little about the works you will find in the museum will enrich your visit much more, trust me.
As soon as you enter the museum, remember to take the map of the place to facilitate the location.
The Uffizi Gallery is huge and understanding where the main works are will help a lot.
To help with planning, check out this list of the main works of art that you will find in the museum (which is U-shaped) and where to find them:
Main works of the second floor
Upon entering the museum you do not go straight to the first floor, but to the second. Then the visit begins after climbing a beautiful staircase that leads to the second floor.
The Spring – Sandro Botticelli (1482):
Another work of great importance by Botticelli is the painting that represents the arrival of spring, with Venus as the highlight. In addition to other mythological characters that meet in a garden.
In addition to these two works by Botticelli, be sure to check out other important works by this painter such as “ The Calumny of Apelles ” and “ Madonna of the Magnificat ”.
Tondo Doni – Michelangelo (1504):
A round painting that got its name because it belonged to the Doni family, who commissioned the painting in this format. The curious thing was that at the time, the paintings in the shape of circles were ordered to mark the will of a marriage. In Italian “tondo” means circle.
The Annunciation – Leonardo da Vinci (1472):
Work that portrays one of the most important biblical scenes, the moment when the Angel Gabriel announces to the Virgin Mary that she is expecting the son of God, Jesus Christ. This is also one of da Vinci’s earliest works.
The creative Leonardo da Vinci is so popular that he has a whole room dedicated just to him, it’s Room 15, which is on the second floor.
Still on the second floor, the room that most caught my attention for its beauty was Room 18 ( Sala da Tribuna ), which is an octagonal room decorated with a beautiful dome and velvet walls.
The Tribune Room still has details in gold and a marble floor. This is the oldest room in the gallery , where the favorite works of the wealthy Medici family are on display, such as sculptures and paintings.
Main works on the first floor
After checking out the works on the second floor, go down to the first floor, where the works of:
Venus of Urbino – Titian (1538):
The goddess of love gained a new expression in the representation of painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Tiziano, who painted a naked woman lying on a bed. This masterpiece, as well as other Venetian works, are located in Room 83.
Medusa – Caravaggio (1597):
The mystical Greek figure of a woman with serpentine hair, Medusa, is one of the most famous paintings by the Italian artist Caravaggio, who has Room 90 dedicated to him.
Medusa is one of Caravaggio’s bloodiest works. Just don’t spend too much time looking at it, as legend has it that Medusa is famous for turning people into stone (myth).
Incidentally, behind the true story, Medusa was not a monster as she appears to be, just a victim who had her body transformed.
Madonna del Cardellino – Rafael Sanzio (1506):
After years of restoration, the surviving work of Raphael’s “Madonna of the Goldfinch” is now available for the public to admire up close.
The talented artist’s masterpiece is one of the most important paintings of the Italian Renaissance. The painting shows the Virgin Mary with two children who symbolize Christ and John the Baptist. The work is in room 66.
On the first floor there are also rooms dedicated to foreign painters, as well as temporary exhibition rooms.
With so much work of art by distinguished artists, dedicate at least 2 hours to discover the Galeria dos Ofícios at your leisure. And if you understand the subject and like to analyze every detail, it is possible to spend the whole day inside the museum.
And the tip is not to focus only on the main works I mentioned here, there are so many beautiful paintings by other artists such as Rembrandt (Dutch painter), Perugino, Lippi, among others.