Sacred Art Museum

The Sacred Art Museum in Montespertoli was inaugurated in 1996. The asset of works of art collected in the Museum comes from theparish church of San Pietro in Mercato and its diocese, but also from the churches of other two sub-dioceses (“pivieri” in italian) namely the ancient ecclesiastical groupings considered as autonomous historical-cultural realities.

The correspondence between a large part of the pivieri’s territory of and that of the current Municipality of Montespertoli, has led to arrange the works of art in the Museum based upon the pivieri: paintings, silverware and wooden furnishings coming from the same church are exhibited in the same room but, for conservation reasons (climate and light) given the fragility of the materials, a special section for vestments and manuscripts has been provided for.

The first room along the exhibition itinerary is the so-called lounge area , dedicated to the parish of San Pietro in Mercato. Here, alongside works from the parish church which are linked to its former patrons, the Machiavelli family, there are paintings, jewellery and furnishings from San Lorenzo in Montegufoni while under the patronage of the Acciaioli family (Madonna and Child by Lippo di Benivieni, 13th-century gemellion, Roman silverware linked to Cardinal Niccolò Acciaioli), but also from small churches that have now disappeared.

The second room of the Museum, called “Green room” due to the color of the walls, is entirely dedicated to the churches of Santa Maria a Torre and San Bartolomeo a Tresanti, with paintings, silverware and furnishings from the seventeenth and eighteenth century.

The third room, called “yellow room” for the color of the faux tapestry, exhibits works from the copes of Santa Maria a Coeli Aula and San Pancrazio, including the Madonna and Child by Filippo Lippi and a rare carved marble baptismal font from the mid-12th century.

The hall of vestments and manuscripts is further testimony to the richness of this area and also to the vitality of the Museum, which saw its collection embellished in 2000 with the recent purchase of the 1456 manuscript, Ritual for the blessing of the baptismal font on Holy Saturday, related to Francesco Machiavelli.

The Museum of Sacred Art in Montespertoli . Proto Pisani RCR (edited by), Florence, 1995.

Emotions at the museum: Montespertoli’s sacred art museum . Accountants R., Zingoni, Pisa, 2001.

The Uffizi Lands project makes a stop at the Museum of Sacred Art in Valdelsa. The museum, adjacent to the church of San Piero in Mercato, was established in the 1990s as a collection point for works previously kept in various churches in the surrounding area that were no longer deemed sufficiently safe from the danger of theft or damage.

DISCOVER THE PROJECT

Through Jan. 8, 2023, Unicoop Firenze is promoting a program of free guided tours for members, with reduced admission fees, of the Uffizi Lands exhibitions.
The initiative also involves the Museum of Sacred Art, where guided tours aimed at illustrating the work on display within the museum are conducted according to a set schedule.
You can learn about all the schedule of visits and make reservations online at the link:
https://www.eventbrite.it/e/biglietti-terre-degli-uffizi-montespertoli-museo-darte-sacra-379226666167

For more information contact the Montespertoli Tourist Office at +390571600255 or by e-mail ufficoturistico@comune.montespertoli.fi.it

https://www.uffizi.it/terre-degli-uffizi

DOWNLOAD TERRE DEGLI UFFIZI MAP

https://uffizi-production-b8df82a1.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/production/attachments/1650359931645687/mappa_corretta.pdf