A new exhibition linked to the Terre degli Uffizi project opens on May 19: until June 2 2024 in the Palazzo dei Vicari in Scarperia, "The Medici: Mugello Folk. Family portraits from the Gallerie degli Uffizi".
The exhibition of four precious family portraits of the first two Grand Dukes of Tuscany, coming from the Uffizi Galleries and arranged in the noble rooms of the Palazzo dei Vicari in Scarperia, is intended to evoke the long and widespread presence of the Medici in the countryside and villages of Mugello, the legendary land of origin of the House.
There were many lands owned by the Medici in Mugello in the mid-15th century, but by the mid-13th century the House had already established its economic interests territorially in the border area between Romagna and Tuscany. The first purchases (1260-64) by Averardo de' Medici were followed by those of Giovanni di Bicci, which included the stately home of Trebbio and, in 1443, the properties expanded to include the acquisition of Cafaggiolo.
The transformation of Trebbio and Cafaggiolo into 'ville di delizia', entrusted by Cosimo il Vecchio to the architect Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, confirms the family's economic interests and the unfailing passion for hunting exercised in the large wooded area that united the two residences.
Before becoming Duke of Florence, Cosimo de' Medici had spent his adolescent years in the castle-villa of Trebbio and, in the early days of the duchy, the presence in the summer months of the prince and his wife Eleonora di Toledo was frequent and alternated between this villa and Cafaggiolo.
With Francesco I, the Grand Duchy's attention shifted to Pratolino, following the road from Mugello to Florence, in a mountainous and impervious area purchased in 1568 to erect the villa of the same name with the garden of wonders invented by Bernardo Buontalenti to host the prince, his beloved Bianca Cappello and many illustrious guests.
Of the four portraits of noble consorts in the Scarperia exhibition, that of Bianca Cappello represents a very welcome return to Mugello, as it is the frescoed portrait from the Church of Santa Maria a Olmi in Borgo San Lorenzo, detached in 1871 to be consigned to the Florentine galleries.
Guided tours are available on request (contact Pro loco Scarperia +39 055 8468165 +39 353 4364738, informazioni@prolocoscarperia.it )
