Uffizi, Botticelli’s masterpieces in Room 41 (VIDEO)

FLORENCE, ITALY – As of tomorrow, July 14th, rooms 9 and 10-14, dedicated to the Pollaiolo brothers, Antonio and Piero, and to Sandro Botticelli, in the Galleria degli Uffizi will be closed to the public. The closing will make it possible to proceed with the “Nuovi Uffizi” – New Uffizi – project which, in addition to indispensable system renovations, will involve a new arrangement of the rooms and a striking display of Botticelli’s paintings.

The Renaissance master’s most famous works have been temporarily moved to the large room (41), accessed from the Third Corridor, that previously housed Rubens’s monumental canvases. The room has been restored and upgraded to current museum standards thanks to a generous donation from the non-profit foundation Friends of Florence. The foundation’s major contribution is also making it possible to dismantle and refurbish the Botticelli Room (10-14) that is scheduled to reopen in 2016.

“We are at what is probably the highpoint and the most delicate part of the ‘New Uffizi’ project”, said Antonio Natali, Director of the Galleria degli Uffizi, “because we are touching one of the museum’s nerve centers. Botticelli’s masterpieces are the most widely viewed paintings in the entire collection, and so, in order not to deprive visitors of the opportunity to see them, we worked night and day here in the Uffizi to set up another room to host them during the remodeling work. Ultimately, I believe that their new home will offer an even more vibrant view of Botticelli’s paintings”.

“This is a very important project for our foundation.” said Simonetta Brandolini d’Adda, President of Friends of Florence, “The Uffizi Gallery’s Botticelli and Pollaiolo artworks fascinate the entire world, including our donors, This made it possible for us to raise $910,000.00 (about 700,000 euro) in just six weeks. I wish to thank our donors for their generous support towards the Botticelli Project. I would also like to thank Antonio Natali and the entire ex- Soprintendenza per il Polo Museale Fiorentino for having invited Friends of Florence to be the sole supporter of this new transformation for the Botticelli rooms in the Uffizi Gallery. Since 1998, Friends of Florence has been committed to protecting and defending the larger and smaller treasures of Florence and Tuscany with the sole objective of safeguarding them for future generations. Working closely with local institutions enables us to fulfill our mission of saving and protecting masterpieces and lesser- known treasures in the city and region. The Botticelli Project, due to be completed in 2016, is also our tribute in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the November 1966 flood that devastated Florence and led to a new awareness of the importance of cultural and historic preservation.”

Room 41 will temporarily host a carefully selected group of paintings by Sandro Botticelli. The Madonna of the Magnificat and The Madonna of the Pomegranate will be on the entrance wall; The Adoration of the Magi, The Primavera (Allegory of Spring), and The Calumny of Apelles will be on one of the side walls, and The Madonna and Child with Saints , The Birth of Venus and Pallas and the Centaur will be on the other. On the wall facing the entrance, the Portrait of a Man with a Medal of Cosimo the Elder and Judith and Holofernes will flank the monumental Portinari Triptych by Hugo van der Goes which will be the fulcrum of a section entirely dedicated to fifteenth-century Northern European paintings when the reorganization of the museum is completed.