In commemoration of the 450th anniversary of the deaths of Cosimo I de’ Medici and Giorgio Vasari, this exhibition at Palazzo Vecchio – promoted by the Florence Office for World Heritage and Relations with UNESCO of the Municipality of Florence and the MUS.E Foundation, with financial support from the Italian Ministry of Tourism’s UNESCO Sites and Creative Cities Fund – offers an in-depth exploration into the magnificent decoration of Palazzo Vecchio’s Great Hall. This room represents one of the greatest achievements of the collaboration between Duke Cosimo, who commissioned the work, and Giorgio Vasari, its principal creator. The hall, built at the end of the 15th century and better known today as the ‘Salone dei Cinquecento’ (Hall of the Five Hundred), underwent major renovation in the 1560s, when the Duke commissioned its decoration in preparation for the wedding celebrations of his eldest son, Francesco, to Joanna of Austria, scheduled for December 1565.

The contracts were signed in April 1563 and involved a whole host of artists, craftsmen and labourers: the walls were raised by about 7 metres, the coffered ceiling was made from a solid wooden framework and adorned with a comprehensive series of paintings, intended to create a symbolic historical-geographical map of Tuscany centred on the figure of Cosimo. Episodes from the history of Florence and its victories over Pisa and Siena are featured on the ceiling, alongside allegories of the city districts and Tuscan cities.

The decoration project, or invention, was planned by Giorgio Vasari with the contribution of the scholar, Vincenzo Borghini. It underwent major changes during its implementation, as reflected, so to speak, in the three drawings produced in successive stages by the artist: drawings displayed in the exhibition – like the above-mentioned letters – on loan from the Florence’s State Archives and the Uffizi Gallery.

Symbolically inaugurated on December 16 – the anniversary of Francesco I de’ Medici and Joanna of Austria’s solemn entry into the city, marked by lavish temporary decorations extending to the Ducal Palace – the exhibition offers the public a comprehensive glimpse into this remarkable artistic workshop. Central to the renovation program commissioned by Cosimo for the Ducal Palace, the project was developed by Giorgio Vasari and executed by a multidisciplinary team of artisans.  In addition to the ceiling plans, the preparatory drawings of some of the scenes, portrayed on the ceiling and walls, attributed to Vasari, are also on display. Take, for example, the drawings of the Capture of Porta Camollia, the Battle of Marciano, referred to in the frescos for the war with Siena, or the ones for the ceiling portraying the episode in which Pope Clemente IV hands his insignia to the captains of the Guelph Party or the one in which Cosimo studies the taking of Siena, which was significantly altered when the Duke asked to be surrounded by his Virtues instead of his advisors. On display is the testimony of the letter written by Cosimo to the artist: «Messer Giorgio Nostro carissimo. La descrittione […], con il disegno che Ci mandate con essa per la sala grande et suo palco, Ci piace assai, massime dimostrando li principi dello stato et a poco a poco la sua propagatione. Due cose per hora Ci occorre ricordarvi, L’una che la corona et assistenza di quei consiglieri che volete metterci atorno nella deliberatione della guerra di Siena non è necessaria, perché Noi soli fummo, ma si bene vi si potrebbe figurare il Silentio, con qualche altra Virtù che representessi il medesimo che li consiglieri. L’altra, che in uno di quei quadri del palco si vedesse tutti li stati Nostri insieme, a denotare l’ampliatione et l’acquisto, oltre che son necessarie ancora in ogni historia qualche motto o parole, per maggiore espressione del figurato. Da Pisa li 14 marzo 1563. El Duca di Fiorenza a Giorgio Vasari, Pittore et architetto nostro carissimo a Fiorenza.» (ASFi, MdP, 219, c.70 , copialettere)

On display is, in fact, a series of letters that provide valuable insight into the origins and the development of the undertaking. They reflect intense exchanges and updates, with Michelangelo’s opinion standing out as particularly noteworthy. As early as 1560, when Vasari was in Rome, he showed a wooden model of the hall to Michelangelo, eliciting his influential opinion: «Illustrissimo Signor Duca. Io ho visto e disegni delle stanze dipinte da Messer Giorgio e il modello della sala grade con il disegnio della fontana di Messer Bartolomeo che va in detto luogo. Circa alla pictura m’’è parso veder cose maravigliose, come sono e saranno tutte quelle che sono e saran fatte sotto l’ombra di V.E. Circa al modello della sala così come è i par basso: bisognerebbe, poi che si fa tanta spesa, alzarla al meno braccia 12.» (ASFi, MdP, 484, c.593).

The display case also contains a ledger of the Fabbriche Medicee (Medici Workshops), whose files are kept in the State Archives. These are testimonies that help us to understand the details of the various interventions – the protagonists, fees and timeframes – painstakingly recorded by the officers of the Ducal palace, which included, for example, the payment in 1570 to Taddeo di Francesco, goldbeater, for 3500 gold leaves, used to «mettere doro gli ornamenti delle storie delle facciate di detto salone» (ASFi, FM 5, c.23v)

The success of the undertaking, coordinated by Vasari and carried out between 1563 and 1565 (with the exception of the frescoes), was made possible by the protagonists of the Fabbriche Medicee, including Bernardo d’Antonio di Monna Mattea as master stonemason; Battista di Bartolomeo Botticelli master woodworker; Stefano Veltroni, Tommaso di Battista, Orazio Porta and Marco da Faenza as decorators; Johannes Stradanus, Giovanni Battista Naldini and Jacopo Zucchi as painters.

Thus, in December 1565, Prince Francesco and Joanna of Austria were able to celebrate their marriage in the prestigious new hall, offering all the guests present an exceptional visual backdrop. As reported by Domenico Mellini, in the hall packed with Florentine gentlemen and ladies and Austrian and German guests, the theatrical performance of La Cofanaria by Francesco d’Ambra took place, followed by a sumptuous banquet. Twelve large lights in the shape of crowns hung from the ceiling while the long walls were adorned with ten monumental canvases with views of Tuscan cities, interspersed with lights and crystal balls filled with water of different colours, «che rendevano per la trasparenza d’un gran lume che gli era dietro a quel corpo diafano che faceva un grandissimo splendore.» The final layout of the east and west walls was, in fact, completed a couple of years later, featuring six magnificent military scenes relating to the wars against Pisa and Siena.

The entire decoration, together with the Audience Hall that had already been designed in the 1540s at the northern end (the fountain planned for the opposite end was never installed), remains a striking testament to power. It glorifies the role and achievements of Cosimo I de’ Medici while also highlighting Giorgio Vasari’s versatility as both an artist and architect. Vasari demonstrated his ability to coordinate a highly complex project, even contributing directly to its execution, within a remarkably short time.

The exhibition sheds light on the artistic process behind this remarkable feat which had a significant impact throughout Italy and in European courts. It offer visitors the opportunity to compare the drawings on display with the paintings in the same hall, highlighting the deep-rooted connection between the exhibition, palace and its decoration. This connection is further emphasised by the video production of Art Media Studio, which juxtaposes the works on display with the panels and frescoes in the room and reveals highly significant details and comparisons.

At the same time, a work of artistic craftsmanship that pays tribute to the figure of Giorgio Vasari, executed by the master goldsmith, Paolo Penko, with great care and skill, will also be on display in one of the rooms that was part of Cosimo’s apartments. The replicas of the chain and medal presented to the artist by Pope Pius V on 30 June 1571 to reward him for his work in the Vatican, will be on display here. As Vasari himself wrote, he was honoured by the Pope with the order of the Golden Spur and the knighthood of St. Peter: «A dj 30 di Giugno 1571 […] S. Santità mj fé Cavaliere Spron doro et mj donò un Cavalierato di San Pietro che costò spedito scudi 900 et dj donativo scudi 150 et una catena di 80 scudi». These prominent symbols are also depicted in his famous self-portrait, which is now displayed at the Uffizi Gallery.