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Medieval Courtyard with Portico
The inner courtyard of Palazzo Reale contains significant medieval remains, including a partially damaged portico with two ornately carved columns and an adjacent ancient tower with distinct architectural features. The space reveals historical layers spanning from the 11th century through to Renaissance interventions. It's worth visiting to see how successive periods have shaped this important Pisan structure.
Medici Tapestries Hall
The Sala di Tapezzerie Medicee in Pisa houses a fine collection of over 30 Medici tapestries of exceptional craftsmanship. These ornate textiles served a dual purpose: they decorated the family's residences whilst projecting dynastic power and prestige. Their portability made them ideal for display across the Medici territories, allowing the family to assert their authority wherever they travelled. Each piece represents skilled weaving and artistic ambition from the height of the Medici influence.
Ceci Collection (Miniatures, Ceramics and Paintings)
The Ceci Collection represents the legacy of Antonio Ceci, a Pisa surgeon and university professor, comprising over 220 ivory miniatures, Italian and English ceramics, Flemish and Italian paintings from the 16th to 18th centuries, and antique furniture. Housed across four gallery rooms, this collection is one of the museum's most significant private donations and offers a fascinating insight into Renaissance and early modern decorative arts and painting.
Medicean and Lorraine Portrait Rooms
The Medici and Lorraine Portrait Rooms house an extensive collection of oil paintings depicting members of the dynasties that ruled Tuscany, from the Medici Grand Dukes to the House of Lorraine. Works by leading Renaissance masters including Bronzino, Tempesti and Alessandro Allori are on display, each capturing the elaborate dress, jewellery and symbols of power worn by their subjects with remarkable precision.
Eleonora of Toledo Room (Clothing)
The Eleonora di Toledo Room sits within the Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Reale and displays a portrait of Eleonora and her son Francesco, painted by Bronzino and his workshop around 1550, alongside a remarkable 16th-century garment belonging to the duchess. The room offers a compelling juxtaposition of Medici power as depicted in paint and the material reality of Renaissance court fashion, allowing visitors to see what to see in terms of both artistic representation and authentic period dress.
Gipsoteca and Works of Italo Griselli
The Gipsoteca e opere di Italo Griselli occupies the final five galleries of the museum and showcases the studio collection of Orlando Italo Griselli, a prominent Italian portrait sculptor of the early twentieth century. The display comprises 202 sculptures alongside 82 paintings and drawings, presenting the complete works left in his workshop. This section offers an exceptional insight into the career of one of Italy's foremost portrait sculptors from that era.
Cathedral Models Room (Quadroni)
The Cathedral Model Hall houses a collection of preparatory paintings at reduced scale, known as 'quadroni', created for the interior decoration scheme of Pisa Cathedral following a fire in 1596. These small-scale models were submitted to the cathedral's commissioners for approval before the full-sized paintings were executed. What to see here are the original designs that shaped the cathedral's artistic restoration.
- 1.Medieval Courtyard with Portico
- 2.Medici Tapestries Hall
- 3.Ceci Collection (Miniatures, Ceramics and Paintings)
- 4.Medicean and Lorraine Portrait Rooms
- 5.Eleonora of Toledo Room (Clothing)
- 6.Gipsoteca and Works of Italo Griselli
- 7.Cathedral Models Room (Quadroni)
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