The Innocenti Museum in Florence
The Hospital of the Innocents (Ospedale degli Innocenti) has been loved by many generations of Florentines. Finally, it has been renovated, reorganized, and reopened as the Museum of the Innocents, or Innocenti Museum, telling the story of this ancient institute from its origins to the present through artefacts, testimonies, architecture, and works of art.
It is certainly one of my favorite museums, and as such as a guide I am always very pleased to accompany visitors in discovering it on a private tour. For years I have been one of the tour guides selected by the former director of the museum, and I am very proud of that!
A brief history of the Innocenti Hospital
The Hospital of the Innocents was the first charitable institution dedicated to children. Founded in 1400 by the will of the rich and powerful Florentine Silk Guild, the institution assisted orphans, abandoned children, and any child who required help and an upbringing, even temporarily.
Construction began in 1419 under the direction of Filippo Brunelleschi. The arcaded loggia is considered a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture, its gray stone lines and white plaster surfaces delineating geometric simplicity and making the complex of arches and columns comprehensible.
The loggia was later embellished by Andrea della Robbia’s glazed terracotta tiles depicting an infant in swaddling, which have become symbolic of the institute itself. On the shorter side of the loggia you can still see the window through which babies were anonymously delivered to the caregivers.
The institute was opened in 1445 and immediately received its first infant, a little girl called Agata Smeralda. Since that day many thousands of children have passed through its doors, hence the proliferation in Florence of surnames such as Innocenti and Degli Innocenti. Over the centuries the establishment has evolved alongside our understanding of children, and today it is still active in childcare.
The Innocenti museum
The exhibit is divided into three segments:
- History – The first section, located in the basement, tells the story or the institute’s development.
- Architecture – Here we encounter the two courtyards; one for boys, one for girls.
- Art – The Innocenti museum’s gallery houses some true masterpieces, some by the great names of Florence, others by lesser-known artists. Among the most noteworthy pieces are Luca della Robbia’s glazed terracotta Madonna with Child, Ghirlandaio’s Adoration of the Magi, and Madonna on the Throne with Child and Saint, by Piero di Cosimo.
The museum also houses the very first painting by Sandro Botticelli. Find out more about it in my post about all Botticelli’s artworks in Florence.
To learn more about the unique technique of the tin glazed terracotta invented by the Della Robbia family, get this book!
Private tours of the Innocenti Museum
Do you want to explore the Innocenti museum with a guide and discover all the stories and secrets of this special place of Florentine history? Take a private tour with me!
- Duration: 1 hour and a half
- Meeting point: piazza Santissima Annunziata
- Included: your local tour guide
- Not included: musem tickets
The private guided tour lasts about one hour and a half. You can finish your visit in style with a coffee or aperitif at the Caffè del Verone on the institute’s terrace with a magnificent view over Florence.
Fill this form to get more information and to book your tour:
- Check also all my other private guided tours in Florence!
