Museo della Natura Morta

The Museo della Natura Morta occupies the second floor of the Medici Villa at Poggio a Caiano. Opened in 2007, it brings together around two hundred still-life paintings, most from the Medici collections, including works by Bartolomeo Bimbi and his contemporaries.

Why it matters

The collection reflects the Medici court’s interest in depicting plants, fruit, flowers and animals. Shown within the villa designed by Giuliano da Sangallo, the paintings connect court collecting with the architecture of the Medici residence.

What to notice

The works date mainly from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Bartolomeo Bimbi’s paintings record fruit, flowers and game in detailed compositions, while works by Andrea Scacciati represent another strand of Tuscan still-life painting. The museum’s upper-floor rooms retain architectural features of the villa, including roof structures and views over the garden.

Context and history

The Medici and, later, the House of Lorraine collected still-life paintings by specialist artists. Many of these pictures were subsequently dispersed among Florentine state collections. The museum opened in the villa’s second-floor rooms in 2007 after restoration. In 2013, the Medici villas and gardens were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The museum forms part of the state-managed Villa Medicea complex.