Palazzo Gondi is a palace in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, located a block from

Piazza della Signoria Piazza della Signoria () is a w-shaped square in front of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, Italy. It was named after the Palazzo della Signoria, also called Palazzo Vecchio. It is the main point of the origin and history of the Florentine Republ ...

. It was built in 1490 under design by

Giuliano da Sangallo Giuliano da Sangallo (c. 1445 – 1516) was an Italian sculptor, architect and military engineer active during the Italian Renaissance. He is known primarily for being the favored architect of Lorenzo de' Medici, his patron. In this role, Giulia ...

, who was inspired by other major works of stately buildings in the city, such as Palazzo Medici and

Palazzo Strozzi Palazzo Strozzi is a palace in Florence, Italy. History The construction of the palace was begun in 1489 by Benedetto da Maiano, for Filippo Strozzi the Elder, a rival of the Medici who had returned to the city in November 1466 and desired the ...

. Among the elements borrowed from these earlier works are the cube-shape set around a central courtyard, the ashlar sloping on each of three floors, and the arched windows. Compared to his models, however, Sangallo was able to modify the use of these elements, making it one of the most successful Florentine buildings of its time. The most innovative element is in the design of the windows: the profile of stones arranged in a radial pattern, which resemble the facets of a precious stone. The windows on the second floor were designed slightly wider than the others to compensate for the optical foreshortening. The construction dragged on, and the building remained incomplete for several centuries. At the end of the 17th century Antonio Maria Ferri worked on the architecture and

Matteo Bonechi Matteo Bonechi (8 November 1669 in Florence – 27 February 1756 in Florence) was an Italian painter of the late Baroque period, active mainly in Florence. He trained under Giovanni Camillo Sagrestani. He also executed works in the church of ...

on the paintings. The building was flanked by an old family house belonging to the Asini family, demolished around 1870 to widen the road along Palazzo Vecchio. On that occasion the building was also expanded with the creation of the third door (the left) and the construction of a new "slice" of the building that increased the number of windows on the facade, creating a similar perspective on Via de' Gondi. Accommodation on the south side had been designed by Giuseppe Poggi, the architect of Piazzale Michelangelo, but was demolished in 1874.

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially res ...

had lived in one of the destroyed houses and is said to have painted the ''

Mona Lisa The ''Mona Lisa'' ( ; it, Gioconda or ; french: Joconde ) is a Half length portrait, half-length portrait painting by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. Considered an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance, it has been described ...

'' there. Today the building still belongs to descendants of the family, but on the ground floor are a bar and other businesses. In the central courtyard, a portico with Corinthian columns on four sides, there is a 17th-century fountain, which uses water from the Boboli Gardens which also supplies the Fontana del Nettuno. From here begins the monumental staircase to the upper floors. The porch is a statue of Roman Togata. Among the decorations inside the palace, there is a fresco and some paintings by Italian and French artists. On the first floor there is also a monumental fireplace which was designed by Sangallo.

Bibliography

*Andreas Tönnesmann, ''Der Palazzo Gondi in Florenz'', Römische Studien der Bibliotheca Hertziana, Werner'sche Verlagsgesellschaft, Worms 1983 *Sandra Carlini, Lara Mercanti, Giovanni Straffi, ''I Palazzi parte prima. Arte e storia degli edifici civili di Firenze'', Alinea, Florence, 2001. *Mariella Zoppi e Cristina Donati, ''Guida ai chiostri e cortili di Firenze'', bilingue, Alinea Editrice, Florence, 1997. *Marcello Vannucci, ''Splendidi palazzi di Firenze'', Le Lettere, Florence, 1995. {{coord, 43, 46, 11, N, 11, 15, 26, E, type:landmark_source:kolossus-itwiki, display=title Buildings and structures completed in 1490 Houses completed in the 15th century Gondi Renaissance architecture in Florence