THE STILL LIFE MUSEUM

The Still Life Museum is the latest cultural offering in the Municipality of Poggio a Caiano; inaugurated on 18 June 2007, the Museum occupies the top floor of the Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano, and houses around 200 paintings that belonged to the Medici family, from the late 16th to the mid-18th century.
Unique of its kind in Italy, the Still Life Museum is the first museum owned by the Soprintendenza del Polo Museale Fiorentino to open in the Province of Prato; the opening of the Museum was made possible thanks to a memorandum of understanding signed in
2005 between the Soprintendenza del Polo Museale Fiorentino and the Municipality of Poggio a Caiano, which co-financed the project.
The Museum makes it possible to see, brought together, paintings never displayed before because until now they had been kept in the storerooms of the Uffizi and Palazzo Pitti. In the Museum's 16 rooms, two of which are decorated in Lorraine style, visitors can see the collections belonging to four generations of the Medici family, from Cosimo II to Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici. The visit chronologically reconstructs the formation of the Medici still life collections, the genre customarily used to furnish and decorate the interiors of the 17 Medici villas in the area, which formed a constellation of residences for hunting and leisure around the royal seat of Palazzo Pitti, the central hub of Medici power and prestige.
Through the figures of the Tuscan grand-ducal dynasty, visitors can follow an itinerary that reconstructs the interests of the Medici family, who from as early as the mid-16th century showed a keen interest in naturalistic illustration. The first still lifes entered the Medici collections in the early 17th century, coming from northern Europe, northern Italy and Rome — the areas where this new artistic genre emerged at almost the same time.
A leading figure of the Museum is the painter Bartolomeo Bimbi, whose masterpieces are permanently displayed in two large rooms dedicated to him. A specialist in the still life genre, the artist worked almost exclusively for the Medici, tasked with illustrating their collections of citrus fruits and the produce of Medici cultivations. The masterpieces that made him famous are the samplers of citrus fruits and other fruits commissioned by Cosimo III at the end of the 17th century for the Villa La Topaia; owing to the high scientific documentary value of these works, it was decided as early as 1990, following the 23rd International Horticultural Congress, that Bimbi's canvases should be displayed at the Villa of Poggio a Caiano. Besides Bimbi's works, the Museum brings together works by Flemish and Italian painters specialising in the still life genre: Jan Brueghel, Mario dei Fiori, Bartolomeo Ligozzi, Margherita Caffi, Giovanni Stanchi, Andrea Scacciati, Otto Marseus.
The Museum's curators are Marco Chiarini and Stefano Casciu, who is also Director of the Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano.

Visiting arrangements:
Visits to the museum are possible every hour,
for a maximum of 45 people at a time.
Booking is required:
tel. +39 055 877012 (Medici Villa).

Opening:
Visits inside the Museum last
60 minutes and are accompanied by
the custodial staff.
Entry at 60 minutes past each hour.

JANUARY – FEBRUARY:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 13.00 – 14.00 - 15.00 (last entry)
MARCH:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 14.00 - 15.00 – 16.00 (last entry)
APRIL – MAY:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 14.00 - 15.00 – 16.00 – 17.00 (last entry)
JUNE – JULY – AUGUST:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 14.00 - 15.00 – 16.00 – 17.00 – 18.00 (last entry)
SEPTEMBER – OCTOBER:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 14.00 - 15.00 – 16.00 – 17.00 (last entry)
NOVEMBER – DECEMBER:
9.00 – 10.00 – 11.00 – 12.00 – 13.00 – 14.00 15.00 (last entry)

Closing days: second and third Monday of the month. New Year's Day, 1 May, Christmas Day.

Tickets: admission is free.

Guided tour bookings:
Guided tours are available by appointment: cultura@ilgrappoloscs.it
For groups: €5 per person (Museum only or Villa only) - €8 per person (Museum + Villa)
For groups of fewer than 5 people: €25 (Museum only or Villa only) - €40 (Museum + Villa)

Information: Contact the Tourist Office of the Municipality of Poggio a Caiano, run by the Pro Loco,
on the following number: +39 055 8798779.
e-mail: infoturismo@comune.poggio-a-caiano.po.it