Museo Horne

The Horne Museum preserves Herbert Percy Horne’s vision of a Florentine Renaissance home. He bought Palazzo Corsi in 1911 and filled it with paintings, sculpture, furniture and domestic objects. Horne left the palazzo and collection to the Italian state in 1916, before the installation was complete.

Why it matters

Herbert Percy Horne was born in London in 1864 and trained as an architect in the circle of Arthur Heygate Mackmurdo, designing textiles, wallpapers and printed books. After visiting Italy in 1889, he settled in Florence in 1905. His 1908 monograph on Sandro Botticelli remains an important work of scholarship. Horne bought Palazzo Corsi in 1911 and restored it to evoke a Renaissance dwelling. In his will of 12 April 1916, he left the palazzo and collection to the Italian state for the benefit of scholarship; he died two days later. The museum opened to the public in 1921 through the efforts of his friends Carlo Gamba and Giovanni Poggi.

What to notice

Paintings, furniture, maiolica and everyday objects share the museum’s domestic interiors. Highlights include Giotto’s panel of Saint Stephen, dated 1330–1335; Pietro Lorenzetti’s panels from before 1320; Simone Martini’s Madonna and Child with the Pietà, dated 1326–1328; Piero di Cosimo’s Saint Jerome; and Benozzo Gozzoli’s Deposition of 1497. Sculptural works include Giambologna’s terracottas, Jacopo Sansovino’s work and a bozzetto of Angels in Glory attributed to the young Gian Lorenzo Bernini. An Embriachi workshop ivory mirror and carved walnut furniture evoke the material culture of the Quattrocento home. The museum displays its collection without wall labels, accompanying it with a catalogue and a digital guide.

Context and history

The Fondazione Horne administers the museum and preserves the founder’s archive and library. Restoration work between 2020 and 2024 included the installation of an elevator to improve access within the historic building. The foundation has also supported the restoration of the Great Hall in Giorgio Vasari’s house near Santa Croce, extending Horne’s interest in Florence’s historic interiors.