THE TRIBUNE IN THE GALLERIA DEGLI UFFIZI

Brief historical notes

The Tribune in the Uffizi (1584) is one of the museum’s most famous and admired rooms. The elegant space was created to celebrate the eclectic interests of the great collector, Francesco I (1541-1587), the spirited Medici prince. It was designed by the architect Bernardo Buontalenti (1523-1608), who was Francesco’s friend and shared his dreams and love of knowledge.

The Tribune opens onto the corridor on the top floor of the large mid-sixteenth century building designed by Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) by order of Francesco’s father, Cosimo I (1519-1574). It was Francesco himself who wanted the first section of the corridor arranged as a gallery: the first museum in Europe.

At the end of the sixteenth century, the crimson velvet covered walls were fitted with fine shelving that displayed jewels, natural rarities, objects made of semiprecious stones, ancient and modern bronzes, small Roman busts, medals and other items that were unusual either in the way they were made or because of their provenance. And the most outstanding paintings of the collections dominated the room.

The Tribune was rearranged, sometimes drastically over the years, or rather centuries. For example under the Lorraines, in the 1780s two doors were opened onto the series of small rooms that lead to the corridor overlooking the Arno and the Tribune became a passageway, albeit a remarkable one, but still a passageway. The walls were stripped of all the shelving to make room for the greatest masterpieces of European painting that flanked the ancient statuary that had been moved into this stately room at the end of the seventeenth century. That the Tribune was a place of excellence, was confirmed throughout the Western World in the letters and diaries of famous travelers.

Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali- Galleria degli Uffizi press release 2