At Stefano Bardini's e Rodolfo Siviero's house: art experts.

This tour outside the traditional tourist routes will take you to discover the museum houses of two great Florentines: Stefano Bardini, the "bad Stefano" antiquarian and Rodolfo Siviero, the 007 art. They lived for art and led a life of adventure and daring. The Florentines both loved and hated them!

In the 19th century in Florence the antique dealing started as a professional business. This happened when they began to "eviscerate" the historic center of Florence city to create a more modern town, in line with major European cities. Works of art and architecture parts of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance buried underground returned  to the light  and gave the start to the  trade of  the most fascinating works of art in the world (and their fake!).Stefano Bardini, discussed and controversial figure, sold works of art from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance era to the most important people, like the couple Jacquemart-André in Paris,  Wilhelm Bode in Berlin, the Romanoff and Demidoff. In his beautiful house painted in "blue Bardini", the colour he invented , you can still see the hundreds of works of art, among them  the Madonna della Mela  and the Madonna dei Cordai by Donatello, the Archangel Michael by Antonio del Pollaiuolo and Charity by Tino di Camaino. In another area of museum are the Piglet by Pietro Tacca and Giambologna's Diavolino, together with one original of the two lions of the 14th century, belonging to the main entrance of Palazzo Vecchio.

Rodolfo Siviero lived during the Second World War and is known as the 007 of art because he has recovered most of the Italian artistic heritage from the spoils of war of the enemies and even of the allies. In the beautiful house on the Lungarno rich in works of art from every period we can still visit the library where Siviero hid the codes with the precise placement of statues, paintings, tapestries and other works stolen from the Uffizi Gallery and other  Florentine art galleries.

And to conclude our tour in a special way: guests are offered an aperitif with appetizers in the Bardini Museum!

Children under 5 years: FREE