House of Buonarroti

Casa Buonarroti, located at via Ghibellina 70 in Florence, is much more than just a museum; it represents a monument to the life and work of the Renaissance genius Michelangelo Buonarroti. This place, full of history, offers an intimate and detailed view of the life of the famous artist, through the collections and the architecture of the palace itself. The house was not directly built by Michelangelo, but by his nephew Leonardo between 1546 and 1553. Later, Leonardo’s son, Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger, expanded and restored the building between 1612 and 1635, turning it into a tribute to the greatness of his great-uncle. This transformation included the integration of two original projects by Michelangelo himself, making the building a living testimony to his architectural genius. The palace, organized on three floors, is composed of several pre-existing properties joined together. Michelangelo briefly lived there before moving near San Lorenzo during the work on the sacristy. Today, Casa Buonarroti houses an impressive collection of artworks, drawings, and models by the artist, including some of his earliest masterpieces such as the “Madonna della Scala” and the “Battle of the Centaurs”. These reliefs, sculpted when Michelangelo was only 17 years old, already show his extraordinary mastery of anatomy and movement. One of the most fascinating aspects of Casa Buonarroti is its extensive collection of Michelangelo’s drawings, the second largest in the world after the Uffizi’s. These drawings, many of which were saved from destruction thanks to the Buonarroti family, offer a rare glimpse into the artist’s creative process. Michelangelo, known as a “divine draftsman”, used drawing to solve compositional problems and work on ideas, as shown in works like the “Study for Cleopatra” and the “Study for the head of Leda”. In addition to Michelangelo’s works, the museum houses a collection of archaeological artifacts, ceramics, and works by artists who were inspired by him. One of the highlights of the museum is the Gallery, created between 1613 and 1635, where the walls narrate Michelangelo’s life through a “biography of images” painted by the most important artists of the time. This room celebrates not only his public and private works, but also his virtues. An interesting curiosity concerns Via Michelangelo Buonarroti, previously known as “Via dei Marmi Sudici”, a name that refers to the marble blocks that lay unused in the street, destined for the artist’s projects. Furthermore, anecdotes related to Michelangelo’s life, such as Lorenzo de’ Medici’s comment on the faun sculpture, add a touch of humanity to the artist’s figure. According to legend, Lorenzo found the sculpture of the young Michelangelo too perfect and suggested making it more realistic; Michelangelo responded to this criticism by breaking a tooth on the sculpture. Over time, the house has undergone various vicissitudes. Filippo Buonarroti, president of the Etruscan Academy of Cortona and scholar, enriched the collection with numerous archaeological artifacts. During the Austrian occupation in 1799, the property was confiscated, but later returned to the family in deplorable conditions. After the death of the last male descendant of the family, Cosimo Buonarroti, in 1858, the palace and its collections were handed over to the Italian state, officially becoming a museum.