Palazzo Strozzi

The construction of the palace was begun in 1489[1] by Benedetto da Maiano, for Filippo Strozzi the Elder, a rival of the Medici who had returned to the city in November 1466 and desired the most magnificent palace to assert his family's continued prominence and, perhaps more important,[2] a political statement of his own status.

The ground plan of Palazzo Strozzi is rigorously symmetrical on its two axes, with clearly differentiated scales of its principal rooms.

Many of these appointments to the building, such as flagpole and torch stands, hitches, lanterns, and sconces decorate the palace exterior and its corners as well as filling functional needs of the day.

Today the palace is used for international expositions like fashion shows and other cultural and artistic events, such as "Cézanne in Florence.

Here also is the seat of the Istituto Nazionale del Rinascimento and the noted Gabinetto Vieusseux, with the library and reading room.