The Palazzo Nonfinito (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

: lit. ''Unfinished Palace'') is a

Mannerist Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it ...

-style palace located on Via del Proconsolo #12, (corner with Via del Corso) in central

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, region of

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, Italy. Begun in 1593 using designs by the architect

Bernardo Buontalenti Bernardo Timante Buonacorsi ( – June 1608), known as Bernardo Buontalenti () and sometimes by the nickname "Bernardo delle Girandole", was an Italian Scenic design, stage designer, architect, theatrical designer, Military engineering, military ...

, only the ground floor was completed, and additional construction was added later by different architects. The palace houses the Anthropology and Ethnology section of the Museum of Natural History of Florence.

History

In 1592, Alessandro

Strozzi Strozzi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Numerous members of the Strozzi family, an ancient later ennobled family from Florence ** Alessandra Macinghi Strozzi (c. 1408–1471), an Italian businesswoman and aristoc ...

commissioned construction at the site on lands that had originally belonged, among others, to the

Pazzi family The Pazzi were a powerful family in the Republic of Florence. Their main trade during the fifteenth century was banking. In the aftermath of the Pazzi conspiracy in 1478, members of the family were banished from Florence and their property w ...

. This palace is separated by an alley from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

-style Palazzo Pazzi. The architect

and his pupil

Matteo Nigetti Matteo Nigetti (ca. 1560/1570 – 1648) was an Italian architect and sculptor. He is an important Baroque architect in Florence. Biography Born in Florence, he was the pupil and assistant of Bernardo Buontalenti, with whom he collaborated on ...

worked on the ground floor (1592-1600), which is characterized by Mannerist touches in the window cartouches and brackets, as well as the side portal. The façade has a heraldic shield of the Strozzi family. The recruitment of the artists

Santi di Tito Santi di Tito (5 December 1536 – 25 July 1603) was one of the most influential and leading Italian painters of the proto-Baroque style – what is sometimes referred to as "Counter-Maniera" or Counter-Mannerism. Biography He was born in Sa ...

to construct the entrance staircase, prompted the other architects to resign the enterprise. The main entrance on Via Proconsolo was built by

Giovanni Battista Caccini Giovanni Battista Caccini or Giovan Battista Caccini (24 October 1556 – 13 March 1613) was an Italian sculptor from Florence, who worked in a Classicism, classicising style in the later phase of Mannerism. Life Giovanni Battista Caccini was b ...

, with designs by

Vincenzo Scamozzi Vincenzo Scamozzi (2 September 1548 – 7 August 1616) was an Italians, Italian architect and a writer on architecture, active mainly in Vicenza and Republic of Venice area in the second half of the 16th century. He was perhaps the most importan ...

(1600-1612).

Ludovico Cardi Lodovico or Ludovico Cardi (21 September 1559 – 8 June 1613), also known as Cigoli, was an Italian painter and architect of the late Mannerist and early Baroque period, trained and active in his early career in Florence, and spending the last ...

helped design the courtyard (1604). After Caccini's death, construction was continued by Negretti, but the palace remained incomplete and thus garnered its name of ''nonfinito''. The palace became property of the Guasti family, and in 1814, it became property of the Government, and was used for offices of the state. During the brief period Florence was the capital of Italy, it served as the home of the Council of State. In 1919, it was made the house of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology, founded by

Paolo Mantegazza Paolo Mantegazza (; 31 October 1831 – 28 August 1910) was an Italian neurologist, physiologist, and anthropologist, known for his experimental investigation of coca leaves and its effects on the human psyche. He was also an author of fiction ...

, and pertaining to the

Università degli Studi di Firenze The University of Florence (Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Firenze'') (in acronym UNIFI) is an Italian public research university located in Florence, Italy. It comprises 12 schools and has around 50,000 students enrolled. History The fi ...

. Mantegazza's bust, by

Ettore Ximenes Ettore Ximenes (11 April 1855 20 December 1926) was an Italian sculptor. Biography Ettore Ximenes was born 11 April 1855 in Palermo, Italy. Son of Antonio Ximenes and Giulia Tolentino, a Sicilian noble woman, Ettore Ximenes initially embarked o ...

is located near the entrance. Nello Puccioni and Aldobrandino Mochi also contributed to the monument.

Anthropology and Ethnology Section of the Museum of Natural History

The museum was founded in 1869 by the anthropologist and collector

. The collection includes objects from the Medici inventories, some donated by explorers to the corners of the world. The eclectic items include Inca mummies from Peru; kimono from Japan; skull trophies from New Guinea, and other objects. A collection of objects from India were collected by the orientalist Angelo De Gubernatis.Museum official website
.

References

{{Authority control Nonfinito Mannerist architecture Renaissance architecture in Florence Museo di Storia Naturale di Firenze