Medici

Whole Ownership at the Palazzo Tornabuoni

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, By Design

Peter Kempf of Kempf International, recently announced that the Palazzo Tornabuoni, Florence's first Private Residence Club, once a 15th century Medici Palace, has for the first time opened 18 whole ownership residences, now available for sale. Kempf's private brokerage firm, Peter Kempf International Ltd., is exclusively handling the transactions.

"Originally, the Palazzo Tornabuoni Private Residence Club became quite a successful fractional after it opened in 2007. The residences were fractionalized into 1/8 shares in 36 apartments. Back then, the population who bought was approximately 70% American, 30% European. It is now 50% US and 50% rest of the world, and we expect the "world" portion to continue to increase. We have members from 5 countries.. At present, two whole ownership residences have been sold and there are offers on two more. Given the state of the world economy, we are very pleased, but given the unique nature of the offering, we are also not surprised."

The wholly owned residences range in price from 1.6 to 5.1M Euro ($2,350,000 to $7,884,500 dollars), and are between one and two bedrooms, with from one to three baths. They are between 700 sf to nearly 3000sf in size. The wholly owned residences are part of the Palazzo Tornabuoni, an edifice that defines the architectural and historical significance of Florence,Italy, as it was built for the Medici family in the l5th century, original 16th-century frescoes by Ciampelli,and an exquisite fireplace adorned with micro-mosaics by the miniaturist Rafaelli (c.1800). Each property is set among the Palazzo Tornabuoni's various courtyards and terraced gardens, and certain residences feature roof-top views of Florence and the Duomo.

It took five years to restore the Palazzo into residences. But with the collaboration of Michele Bonan, the award-winning Tuscan-born interior designer, Its contemporary design captures Bonan's signature style in creating "an environment in which the owner feels they belong...and are not just visiting." This was a complex undertaking, as the Palazzo defines by its very architectural style, a kind of Renaissance formalism, and is also is a museum of sorts of Renaissance art and artisanry -- there are original 16th-century frescoes by Ciampelli,and an exquisite fireplace adorned with micro-mosaics by the miniaturist Rafaelli (c.1800). Outside, a central courtyard still exists that was originally created by Renaissance architect Michelozzo (1400). But yet the residences do have a kind of contemporary comfort, even though surrounded by the finest 15th century Florence had to offer.

Gallery: Palazzo Tornabuoni

Tags: Florence, Florentine Art, FlorentineArt, Four Seasons Firenze, Italy, Medici, Medici palaces in Florence, Pope Leo IX, PrivateResidenceClubs, wholly owned residences

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Santa Maria Novella Body Milk

by Anne Metz (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Cosmetics and Fragrance

If you're anything like me, you're probably growing a bit weary of all of the da Vinci hype that has been going around: the movie, the book (now finally in paperback), the lawsuit.

All the more reason to mention another name from the Italian Renaissance to whom the Western World owes a great debt: the de' Medici family. Between the 13th and the 17th-centuries, the de' Medici clan was Florence's most famous set of movers and shakers. Their philanthropy brought into the world the Pitti Palace, the Uffizi Gallery and the Boboli Garden, as well as a slew of paintings and frescoes from the all-stars of Renaissance art: Masaccio, Donatello and Fra Angelico.

But what you might not know is that the de' Medicis were also vanguards in the field of cosmetics. The Santa Maria Novella Latte per Il Corpo (body milk, for any non-Italian speakers out there) is made according to the same exacting standards required by matriarch Catherine de' Medici some 700 years ago. This lightly moisturizing body milk instantly absorbs into your skin, leaving nothing but a delicate magnolia scent.

So even if you can't have the clout of Catherine de' Medici, at least you can do your best to smell like her. Price: $72.

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Tags: beauty, Boboli Garden, BoboliGarden, cosmetic, da Vinci Code, DaVinciCode, Italy, Medici, Pitti Palace, PittiPalace, Uffizi