Palazzo Portinari Salviati: interior design project

Palazzo Portinari Salviati is one of the most important and renowned buildings in the history of Florence.

It was built by the Portinari family, the same family that included Beatrice, the muse of Dante, and it was acquired by Jacopo Salviati (the husband of Lucrezia de Medici) in 1456, who enlarged and modified it in what stands today as a truly magnificent example of Florentine Renaissance architecture

Some illustrious names in the history of the city have lived and stayed here, and these have become the real protagonists of  Spagnulo&Partners interior design project, aimed at converting this landmark building into a historic residence with apartments, a starred restaurant and a spa.

The project aims to tell a story which, through the characters who belonged to the Portinari and Salviati families, unfolds a spatial journey through the streets of Florence, connecting all those loose threads which were suspended in the succeeding generations.

The guests of the former Palazzo of Beatrice will be amazed as they become acquainted with characters nowadays unknown to most, but who were once the main protagonists of the events which made Florence a unique city.

Whoever sleeps in the room of Jacopo Salviati, the gonfalonier of Justice, will discover who was the man behind commissioning the sculpture of David, one of Michelangelo’s most famous works.

Whoever stays in the room of Lionardo Salviati will be able to get to know the Accademia della Crusca, the oldest European language research institution, whose dictionary was a success throughout Europe and became a model for other European Accademies, resulting in the creation of their own vocabularies in their respective languages. The guest will be encouraged to visit the Medici Villa di Castello, one of the main surburban villas of the Medici family, whose gardens are second only to those of Boboli.

Whoever pauses to read the fortunes of Filippo Salviati, will get to know one of the closest friends of the founder of the scientific  method at the base of modern science, Galileo Galilei.

Whoever is moved by Anton Francesco Corsi Salviati and his son Bardo Salviati will see the landscape of the Tuscan countryside in a new light and discover that it is by no coincidence or even by divine grace, but only by human intervention if, at the mountaintop there is a cypress or in the middle of that garden there is a palm tree.

From history to history: through love, from Dante’s angelic one to Federick IV of Denmark’s romantic one; through politics, from the de’ Medici side with Jacopo Salviati or the opposition party with Cardinal Francesco; through science, that of the sky of Filippo and that of the earth of Anton Francesco; through business, those unscrupulous deals of Tommaso Portinari and those charitable ones of Folco, the father of Beatrice, the guest will be able to experience the exclusivity of an extraordinary story.

The magnificence of the furnishings, and the richness of the finishing details offset the secrecy of ancient stories, masterfully brought back to life to be whispered to a few close friends, who alone, will have the unique opportunity, out of all the millions of foreign tourists who crowd the city, to return home and reveal the secret of the man’s name who armed the hand that killed Giuliano and wounded Lorenzo de’Medici or the honour of having been guests in the family palace of Grand Dukes, Popes and Queens.