Casino Mediceo di San Marco, Renaissance palace in Florence, Italy.
Casino Mediceo di San Marco is a late-Renaissance palace in Florence featuring a central portal and terrace designed by Bernardo Buontalenti starting in 1574. The building displays characteristic architecture of this period, with carefully crafted exterior elements still visible today.
Francesco I de Medici commissioned the palace's reconstruction between 1568 and 1574, transforming a former arts academy into a city residence. This major renovation made the building an important Medici family center in the city.
The palace interior features frescoes depicting scenes of Medici grand dukes, painted between 1621 and 1623 by artists including Anastasio Fontebuoni. These wall decorations still shape how the rooms feel and tell stories about the ruling family's taste and influence.
The building sits at Via Cavour 57 and now houses the School of Transnational Governance, part of the European University Institute since 2017. Keep in mind that it is an active academic building, so access may be limited for visitors.
The palace contained a research laboratory called Fonderia where scholars conducted chemical experiments and made advances in Oriental porcelain production. This scientific heritage shows how Renaissance culture linked the arts with practical invention and discovery.
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