Tours / Tour of Mugello: the place of the Medici's roots

Mugello, a place of reflection and enchantment, but also of history, flavors and local traditions.

A guided tour that avoids the paths common to mass tourism and takes us to the peace of the places so dear to the Medici family, a few kilometers from Florence.

As soon as we arrive in Mugello we will visit Scarperia, a "new land" founded by the Florentine Republic in the 14th century, where the Palazzo dei Vicari, a miniature Palazzo Vecchio, in imitation of the most famous Florentine palace, can still be visited today. Here you can admire, in addition to the rooms of the vicars, also the Museum of Cutting Tools, as knives have been a local production since the Middle Ages in Scarperia. You will hear anecdotes referring to the "stories of knives" that occurred among the local population in past centuries and which have come down to us through the historical archive of the prison, which was located in the basement of the building. We will visit the ancient Bottega del Coltellinaio and see the tools for making knives by hand. For knife lovers, Scarperia is a real amusement park.

We will have lunch in a typical restaurant of the village, to taste the famous Mugello potato tortelli.

In the afternoon we will walk on the lake of Bilancino and we will pass by the naturalistic oasis of Gabbianello, to stop at the Convent of Bosco ai Frati, built by the Medici architect Michelozzo on commission from Cosimo de' Medici. Inside we will see a unique work, the Crucifix by Donatello, another artist so dear to Cosimo the Elder, grandfather of Lorenzo the Magnificent.
On the way back to Florence we will also come across the famous Medici Villa of Cafaggiolo, a country residence loved by the Magnificent and his wife Clarice Orsini. It is a pearl of Renaissance architecture set on the hills around Florence, a pleasant place for hunting and reflection for the Medici family.