Palazzo Pitti

Palazzo Pitti is a large Renaissance palace on the south bank of the Arno in Florence, originally commissioned in the mid-15th century. It became the principal residence of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany after acquisition by the Medici in the mid-16th century.

The complex houses several state galleries and museums spread across the palace and its grounds, plus the adjacent historic Boboli Gardens. Highlights include Renaissance and Baroque paintings displayed on the piano nobile, period royal apartments, and extensive fashion and modern art collections. The Boboli Gardens extend directly behind the palace and contain monumental sculptures and formal terraces dating from the 16th century.

Construction began for the original private palace in about 1458 for the Florentine banker Luca Pitti; the Medici purchased and expanded it in 1549. The building served Tuscany’s ruling families through the Grand Duchy and later the House of Savoy before becoming a public museum complex in the 20th century.

The palace sits in Florence’s Oltrarno district on the west side of the historic centre, immediately southwest of the Ponte Vecchio and within easy walking distance of the Duomo and other central sites.

• Viewing tips: Best photographic views of the palace façade and gardens are from the amphitheatre and terraces inside the Boboli Gardens and from the Ponte Vecchio a short walk to the north.

What to See #

• Palatine Gallery: Houses major Renaissance paintings and decorative arts on the piano nobile, with important works by Raphael and Titian arranged in historic rooms that reflect Medici-era display.
• Royal Apartments: Contains period rooms used by the ruling families of Tuscany, showing original furnishings, tapestries and frescoed chambers on the first and second floors.
• Galleria d'Arte Moderna: A 19th-century collection focused on 19th- and early 20th-century Italian painting and sculpture located in rooms adjacent to the palace complex.
• Museo della Moda e del Costume: Displays costume, fashion accessories and textiles spanning the 18th to 20th centuries in galleries dedicated to the history of dress.
• Boboli Gardens: A historic formal garden laid out from the mid-16th century behind the palace, notable for its monumental sculptures, grottos and landscaped terraces accessible from the palace grounds.