Born and dying in Florence, he served as director of the Uffizi Gallery from 1775 to 1793.

Orphaned early in life, he studied law at the University of Pisa but did not gain his doctorate.

A supporter of the Tuscan Enlightenment, he wrote several books, essays and dissertations on art and culture.

In the 1770s, he replaced the scholar Giovanni Lami as the editor of the erudite "Novelle letterarie" journal of Florence.

He also wrote the 80-volume Efemeridi, a collection of diaries offering an incredible fresco of Florentine society between 1750 and 1799.