Medici Chapels: Michelangelo's Legacy in the Heart of Florence

Medici Chapels: Michelangelo's legacy in the heart of renaissance Florence

In a wing of the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence is the place where, from the fifteenth century onwards, the Medici family placed the tombs of its most important members. In fact, Lorenzo the Magnificent, Cosimo I, Giuliano, but also the last of the Medici, Gian Gastone, who died in 1737 and with whom the dynasty became extinct, rest here. Today these rooms are an incredibly fascinating museum, not only for their historical value, but also for their architectural and artistic value. In any case, they are an unmissable stop for those visiting Florence and a special opportunity to learn more about the history of the family that made such a special contribution to making this city the true cradle of art.

The Medici Chapels are divided into three main rooms, plus the so-called Secret Room of Michelangelo.

The area known as the New Sacristy is one of the architectural jewels of the Renaissance, designed by Michelangelo and built over the course of ten years. Here are the funerary monuments of Lorenzo the Magnificent and his brother Giuliano and some of Michelangelo's most admired sculptures, such as the allegories of Night and Day and those of Twilight and Dawn. Below is Michelangelo's Secret Room, with some sketches an drawings, which can only be visited by reservation.

The second room is the Cappella dei Principi, with the vault frescoed a few centuries later by Pietro Benvenuti and the sumptuous decorations of marble and semiprecious stones created by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence, inaugurated specifically for this purpose, and still existing. Just below the Chapel is the crypt designed by Buontalenti, where the visit actually begins. In this space, which also hosts temporary exhibitions, there are the ticket office and the bookshop.d drawings, which can only be visited by reservation.

Useful information for visiting the Medici Chapels

The entrance to the Medici Chapels is located in Piazza di Madonna degli Aldobrandini n° 6, in the center of Florence, not far from the Santa Maria Novella station.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Medici Chapels

1. What's inside the Medici Chapels?
The Medici Chapels include three rooms: a crypt on the lower level, and on the upper level the New Sacristy and the Chapel of the Princes. All the rooms house the tombs of the Medici family, as well as various works of art from different eras. The most famous of all are Michelangelo's sculptures in the New Sacristy.

2. How long does it take to visit the Medici Chapels?
The time to dedicate to the visit is at least an hour and a half.

3. Who painted the Medici Chapels?
The dome of the room known as the Chapel of the Princes is a 19th-century work by Pietro Benvenuti

4. Where is Michelangelo's secret room?
Inside the Medici Chapels, below the New Sacristy, there is the small room known as Michelangelo's secret room. The Room is not always open to visits and accessible to groups of four people for conservation reasons.

How to visit the Medici Chapels

To visit the Medici Chapels you have to reach the Basilica of San Lorenzo, but the entrance to the museum is located behind the church, in Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini.

Buying the ticket in advance is definitely advisable to skip the lines that can often become quite long, given that the Medici Chapels are among the most famous museums in Florence.

Michelangelo and Brunelleschi in comparison

The most famous room of the Medici Chapels is the New Sacristy, designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti and among the greatest expressions of Renaissance architecture. But why New Sacristy? Well, hits names derives from the fact that inside the Basilica of San Lorenzo there was already a sacristy, a work by Brunelleschi that was about a century older.

Michelangelo took inspiration from his illustrious predecessor, designing a room that has the same square plan on which a hemispherical dome is also grafted. The Old Sacristy, however, was one of the first works of the Renaissance, while the New Sacristy is in a certain sense its completion.

Another substantial difference is that while the Old Sacristy appears sober, monumental and austere, the environment designed by Michelangelo is more complex and conveys an idea of ​​grandeur that seems to already anticipate Mannerism.

What is Michelangelo's Secret Room

The Medici Chapels have guarded a secret for centuries that came to light only in the seventies of the last century during a restoration. It was then that a small room measuring seven by two meters was rediscovered, on whose walls, under the plaster, sketches and drawings by Michelangelo were found. It seems that the artist found refuge here for about two months, to escape the vengeance of the Medici to escape the reprisals of the Medici family, during a period of strong political turbulence.

Michelangelo's Secret Room is a very delicate environment, for this reason access is permitted only by reservation and in small groups.