Palazzo Pitti

Luca Pitti, Florentine merchant and banker, had his family palace built on the edge of the city centre south of the River Arno from about 1454 onwards. In 1549, the Medici family bought it and had it extended to create a magnificent residence for the rulers. However, the building in its current form was only completed in the 19th century: Between 1764 and 1839, the new Grand Dukes of Tuscany from the House of Habsburg-Lorraine built the two wings either side of the forecourt, which gave the Piazza de' Pitti its characteristic appearance. It is not easy to visually reproduce this monumental building. The impact of the 36-metre high front, in a uniform repetitive design, is increased by the upwards slope of the forecourt and is much easier to capture using a slightly diagonal perspective rather than a direct head-on one. Antonio Terreni and Guglielmo Silvestri chose this kind of perspective for their portrayal of the building. Giuseppe Gherardi followed this example as well. He also included the rows of houses opposite in his view and thus placed the palace in its urban context. Behind the palazzo, the view opens out over the Boboli gardens behind the Mannerist inner courtyard designed by Bartolomeo Ammanati. The gardens are not only scenographically connected with the palace, but also provide to this day some of the most beautiful views of the city. One of these is the view by Guglielmo Silvestri.