Nearby

Bologna

city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy

44.507511.351389

Florence

Italian city, located in Tuscany

43.783311.25

Pisa

city in Tuscany, Central Italy

43.716710.4

we will see

Uffizi

Italy
Outstanding fine art museum with Renaissance paintings and sculptures from classical antiquity. It's in a late 16th C palazzo designed by Vasari, in two wings enclosing a long narrow courtyard, effectively a street, an innovation in its day. Originally the palazzo was magistrates' offices (hence "Uffizi") and state archives; then it came to house the Medici's vast art collection. The artworks are on the first and second floors, they keep the lifts well hidden. Highlights include Birth of Venus by Boticelli, Dukes of Urbino by della Francesca, Medusa by Caravaggio, Venus of Urbino by Titian, Annunciation by da Vinci, Pope Leo X and family by Raphael, Velasquez' self-portrait, Rembrandt's final self-portrait, and many other big names. Allow three hours for a visit. Uffizi majors on Renaissance, so although later styles are represented they're few: you don't really come here for the 18th - 20th C material. The restaurant/cafè has a large balcony overlooking the main piazza with good views of the Palazzo Vecchio, and naturally their prices reflect the views.