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Palazzo dello Strozzino is a
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
palace in
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
, region of Tuscany,
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 re ...
. The stone Renaissance facade is located on Piazza degli Strozzi, diagonal to the Southeast corner of the imposing
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 ...
. The Northern façade on Via dei Anselmi houses the entrance to the Cinema Odeon.


History

The palace, once known as the Palazzo delle Tre Porte for its three ground doorways, was a residence of the cadet branch of the
Strozzi family The House of Strozzi is the name of an ancient (later noble) Florentine family, who like their great rivals the Medici family, began in banking before moving into politics. Until its exile from Florence in 1434, the Strozzi family was by far the ...
; it was older and smaller than the grandiose Palazzo Strozzi. The palace houses the Cinema Odeon, designed (1920) by
Marcello Piacentini Marcello Piacentini (8 December 1881 – 19 May 1960) was an Italian urban theorist and one of the main proponents of Italian Fascist architecture. Biography Born in Rome, he was the son of architect Pio Piacentini. When he was only 26, he was ...
, as well as the language school of the
British Institute of Florence The British Institute of Florence is a cultural institute founded in 1917 in Florence, Italy, with the aim of promoting Anglo-Italian cultural relations, teaching English and Italian languages, and running a library of English books to illustrate B ...
. Built on land owned by
Palla Strozzi Palla di Onofrio Strozzi (1372 – 8 May 1462) was an Italian banker, politician, writer, philosopher and philologist. Biography He was born in Florence into the rich banking family of the Strozzi. He was educated by humanists, learning Greek ...
, it passed to his cousins Agnolo and Palla di Novello after his exile in 1434. They ordered a renovation around 1457, with the design attributed to
Filippo Brunelleschi Filippo Brunelleschi ( , , also known as Pippo; 1377 – 15 April 1446), considered to be a founding father of Renaissance architecture, was an Italian architect, designer, and sculptor, and is now recognized to be the first modern engineer, p ...
, although other architects participated in the construction, including
Michelozzo Michelozzo di Bartolomeo Michelozzi (1396 – 7 October 1472) was an Italian architect and sculptor. Considered one of the great pioneers of architecture during the Renaissance, Michelozzo was a favored Medici architect who was extensively empl ...
, to whom the lower façade, featuring an irregular rustication, is attributed. The first floor, which has double
mullioned window A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...
s and a gentler rustication, is attributed to
Giuliano da Maiano Giuliano da Maiano (1432–1490) was an Italian architect, intarsia-worker, and sculptor, the elder brother of Benedetto da Maiano, with whom he often collaborated. Biography He was born in the village of Maiano, near Fiesole, where his fathe ...
(c. 1456). The third floor, with more polished stone, was not added until the 19th century, in a style paralleling similar Renaissance palaces. Michelozzo also designed the internal courtyard (c. 1460), which had a portico with columns. The courtyard was destroyed to accommodate the cinema. The palazzo was partially demolished in the period when Florence was the capital of Italy (1865). Earlier in the 19th century, as part of the Risanamiento the whole neighborhood was altered. The land in front of the Palazzo Strozzi now occupied by the
Palazzo Mattei A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...
was once the site of the ''Piazza delle Cipolle'' and the church of ''Santa Maria degli Ughi''.I Palazzi, page 107.


References


Sources

* {{Coord, 43, 46, 15.01, N, 11, 15, 9.25, E, display=title Strozzino Strozzi family Renaissance architecture in Florence