After 20 years at the Uffizi, the Terrazzo delle Carte Geografiche reopens

Two wall maps from the end of the sixteenth century, each occupying an entire wall, with the names of the places written in gold: they respectively depict the Florentine territory (called the “ancient” domain) and the Sienese territory (called the “new” domain, because it was obtained a few years first). A third wall with the island of Elba in the Tyrrhenian Sea; finally the most beautiful ‘map’ of all: thanks to a large window overlooking Florence, a breathtaking view that embraces the heart of the city, from the church of Santa Croce, to piazzale Michelangelo passing through the basilica of San Miniato al Monte. It is the Terrazzo delle Carte Geografiche at the Uffizi, where Dario Argento in the film “The Stendhal Syndrome” (1996) shot the scene in which the protagonist faints: it reopens to the public tomorrow, Tuesday 14 December, after a closure that lasted over twenty years except for a short period, in 2014, to host an exhibition on the Tavola Doria. At the end of the restoration, today the presentation takes place symbolically on the day of the start of the International Congress of Cartography, organized in the Tuscan capital. The Terrazzo, a room about a hundred square meters wide and so called because the architect Giorgio Vasari originally had it built as an open loggia, was transformed into an enclosed space around the 1890s, when Ferdinando de ‘Medici returned from Rome, where he was cardinal, to become, with the name of Ferdinando I, Grand Duke of a newly unified Tuscany after the victory of Florence against Siena. To celebrate this conquest and the greatness of the dynasty, he had the cartographer Stefano Bonsignori devise the maps of the territories of the Grand Duchy, then painted by the painter Tommaso Buti: two large geographical ‘maps’, each occupying an entire wall, which meticulously represent approximately 1: 30,000 the Medici possessions, which in terms of size already almost traced the shape of present-day Tuscany. A special place in the Gallery, like the Tribuna del Buontalenti: here Ferdinando used to bring his most illustrious guests to amaze them with the representation of the beauty and vastness of his domains. Not only that: from a hall in Palazzo Firenze in Rome, Ferdinando had a ceiling with allegorical paintings by the painter Jacopo Zucchi transferred here. On a third wall it is possible to admire the painted paper of the island of Elba: the case dates back to the mid-nineteenth century, since the original version, from the sixteenth century like the others, had in fact been lost during a reconstruction of the entire wall. And from today, next to Elba, another beautiful work is exhibited: the famous table top in semi-precious stones with the View of the port of Livorno, made in the sixteenth century by Cristofano Gaffurri based on a design by Jacopo Ligozzi. The restoration and rearrangement of the Terrazzo delle Carte Geografiche was a long and complex job, carried out in coordination by the Gallerie and Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence. Over two years the duration, for a total cost of over 700 thousand euros, of which about half a million offered by the Friends of the Uffizi Galleries, the US branch of the Friends of the Uffizi. About 50 specialists involved. The operations on the mural maps and the nine ceiling paintings are particularly delicate: of the former the colors and legibility of the luminous toponymy in gold have also been restored, while on the latter the recovery intervention has involved both the paintings on wood – in some cases severely damaged by water infiltration from the roof over the centuries – than the decorated and gilded cornices. Finally, the flooring, in hand-made terracotta, which recalls the original one, of the ancient Vasari terrace was completely renovated. The architectural restoration and the setting up are due to Antonio Godoli (formerly the architect responsible for the Uffizi), and the scientific direction of the restoration of the wall and panel paintings to Anna Bisceglia (curator of the 16th century painting at the Uffizi). The technical direction is by Cristiana Todaro (restorer officer of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence, wall paintings and stucco sector), the documentary and archival research by Daniela Smalzi.The room is also equipped with ten seats to stop and enjoy the details of the maps and the ceiling; an air conditioning system with special calibration will guarantee constant air conditioning. Last news: to avoid crowds and guarantee a safe and pleasant visit, the space near the door has been equipped with a computerized system that automatically regulates access for up to twenty people. Thus the director of the Uffizi Galleries Eike Schmidt: “On these walls we admire a spectacular representation of Tuscany, where the ancient names of over 1200 cities and villages, even the smallest and most remote, are elegantly written in gold and often accompanied by the first representation known pictorial of the various localities. All the inhabitants of the region can recognize in the large maps of the Uffizi the places they love, their origins by rediscovering the history of the territory and its landscape “. The president of the Tuscany Region, Eugenio Giani, said during the presentation event: “This is wonderful news. With the reopening of the hall, the already rich cultural heritage of this city is enriched, which Florentines and Tuscans will be able to enjoy. The beautiful sixteenth and nineteenth century maps of the Grand Duchy that are definitely visible again they will also have a tourist appeal: further call for a restart after the months in which the pandemic had reduced travel and visitors “. The president of the Amici degli Uffizi and Friends of the Uffizi Galleries, Maria Vittoria Rimbotti, commented:” Finally, after twenty years, we can admire the terrace of the geographical maps created by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, the Cardinal Ferdinando I, a man passionate about science and the arts. Having contributed, together with the Friends of the Uffizi Galleries, to the return to the public of this 16th century jewel fills us with satisfaction “.