Hospital of Innocents, Renaissance museum in Piazza Santissima Annunziata, Florence, Italy
The Ospedale degli Innocenti is a 15th-century building in Piazza Santissima Annunziata, Florence, now housing a museum dedicated to the history of child care. Its facade displays a loggia with nine rounded arches supported by columns made of pietra serena, decorated with terracotta medallions showing swaddled babies crafted by Andrea della Robbia.
The institution was designed by Filippo Brunelleschi in 1419 and funded by the Silk Guild to care for abandoned children. It is considered the first orphanage in Europe and continued its work of supporting foundlings for over six centuries.
The museum collection includes paintings from Botticelli and Ghirlandaio, along with historical documents detailing six centuries of child assistance in Florence.
The building spans five floors accessible by elevator and provides audio guides in several languages. Opening hours run from Thursday to Tuesday between 8:30 AM and 2:00 PM.
A revolving wheel built into the outer wall allowed parents to leave infants anonymously, with each child receiving a recognition token for possible future identification. Some of these tokens are now displayed in the museum, showing how families tried to keep the possibility of future reunion open.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
