The Palazzo Davanzati is yet another historic building the significance of which is yielded by the museum it hosts. Built during the 14th century by the Davizzi family, a reputed family thriving on the wool trade, it was only in the latter half of the 16th century that the Davanzati family purchased the palace, after a short intermission when the palace was the proud possession of the Bartolini family (from 1516 to 1578).

The palace became a museum under the antiquarian Elia Volpi, in 1910, under the name of Museo Privato della Casa Fiorentina Antica. The Italian State purchased the edifice in 1951 from its penultimate owners, Vitale and Leopoldo Bengujat (famed Egyptian antiquities traders) who, at their turn, had acquired it from Volpi in the 3rd decade of the 20th century. Despite such overturns, the Palazzo Davanzati managed to maintain its original architectural structure and decorative elements, such as the façade, the mullioned windows and a loggia, and gradually it enriched its museum asset, such that at present is boasts a reasonably wide collection of painting, furniture and other items clustered as a result of donations and acquisitions, though its highlights refer to the impressive miscellaneous collection meant to reflect the way Florentines used to decorate their homes from medieval times to the Renaissance. A possible highlight of this museum refers to its impressive lace collection, as well as to the so-called Parrot Room.

Name:
Palazzo Davanzati
Address:
13 Via Porta Rossa, Florence
Telephone number:
0039 (0)55 238 8610
Website:
www.polomuseale.firenze.it