While we are not travelling right now, it’s a great time for some virtual visits.

The Galleria degli Uffizi is a prominent art museum located in the historic center of Florence, Italy.  It is one of the largest, best known, most important and most visited Italian museums.  It holds a priceless collection of art, particularly from the period of the Italian Renaissance.  

Fifteenth century Italy was unlike any place in Europe – divided between independent city-states each with a different form of government.  Florence where the Italian Renaissance began was an independent republic.  It was also a banking/commercial capital and the 3rd largest city in Europe after London and Constantinople (or do you say Istanbul?).  Wealthy Florentines flaunted their money and power by becoming patrons of the arts. 

I went to a restaurant that serves ‘breakfast at any time’. So I ordered French Toast during the Renaissance. – Steven Wright

The powerful Medici family attained wealth in Florence through their success in commerce and banking.  The Medici’s produced four popes and their genes were thoroughly mixed into many of Europe’s royal families.  

In 1560, when Cosimo de’ Medici (or Cosimo the Elder) moved their Florentine administrative offices into a building known as the Uffizi (Office) he also established a small museum.  The building is now home to many of the great Renaissance era treasures amassed by the Medicis since the time of Cosimo.  So today – let’s visit the Uffizi Gallery.

[ngg src=”galleries” ids=”15″ display=”pro_horizontal_filmstrip”] 

You can explore the Museum courtesy of Google Arts & Culture 

https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/uffizi-gallery