Treasury of the Grand Dukes
A rich collection of decorative arts in the Medici’s sumptuous Summer Apartments
Formerly known as the Silver Museum, the Treasury of the Grand Dukes is located on the ground and mezzanine floors of Pitti Palace, and comprises the rooms that were once the summer apartments of the Medici family. Its walls, entirely frescoed on the occasion of the wedding between Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinando II de’Medici and Vittoria della Rovere (1637), are one of the first examples of quadrature and trompe-l’oeil perspective in Florence. It houses the precious “Medici’s Treasure”: semi-precious stone vases, rock crystals, ambers and ivories. The silverware comes from the “Treasure of Salzburg” - the collections of the Bishops of Salzburg - and was brought to Florence by Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinand III of Habsburg-Lorraine. The Museum also houses an important collection of jewellery realized between the 17th and 20th centuries and has a large section dedicated to contemporary jewellery.
