Galleria dell'Accademia, Art museum in Florence, Italy
The Galleria dell'Accademia occupies part of the former hospital of San Matteo and the convent of San Niccolò di Cafaggio on Via Ricasoli, beside the Accademia di Belle Arti. Its rooms hold seven Michelangelo sculptures, the largest such group anywhere, among them the David, the four unfinished Prisoners and the unfinished Saint Matthew. The Bartolini plaster gallery and the nineteenth-century hall display the academy's original plaster models and paintings.
Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo founded the museum in 1784 to give art students from the nearby academy access to masterpieces. The famous statue was moved here from Piazza della Signoria in 1873 to protect it from weather damage.
The gallery takes its name from the Academy of Fine Arts, which originally trained apprentices in drawing and sculpture. Visitors today can observe Michelangelo's four unfinished Prisoners, which still appear partly trapped within the marble and show how the artist freed his figures from the stone.
The museum sits on Via Ricasoli, just a few minutes' walk from the cathedral. On weekends and during peak travel season, waiting times can be long, so an early morning visit is advisable.
The museum holds a collection of historical musical instruments from the conservatory, including pieces by Stradivari. In a separate gallery stands the world's first hammer piano, which Bartolomeo Cristofori invented around 1700 in Florence.
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