Villa Monna Lisa - Historic Mansion on the hills of Florence
A few kilometers from Florence, an extraordinary sixteenth-century complex of significant historical and architectural prestige, which in the sixteenth century belonged to the powerful family of Francesco del Giocondo, husband of the Mona Lisa known as "la Gioconda". The villa then passed to the Antinori family, hence its name - Villa Antinori di Monte Aguglioni - and then again many times until the current owners. This exceptional complex, immersed in a 27-hectares ( 66,7185 acres) divided into gardens, tree-lined avenues and a large forest, consists of the main villa and numerous appurtenances such as the caretaker′s house, buildings for agricultural use, the private chapel, the swimming pool and a tennis court.
There are two entrances: the main and original one which leads, through an imposing iron gate, into the majestic cypress tree-lined avenue which leads to the garden with plants and ornamental tubs; the garden was designed by the well-known English architect Cecil Pinsent who gave it the characteristics of a real park, with roses, tall trees and symmetrical flowerbeds. From here, a staircase with a double opposing flight leads to the entrance of the villa, whose main body covers a total area of 2,800 sqmt ( 30.138,95 sqft), and is made up of three floors above ground and a basement. On the ground floor, from the loggia at the entrance, we find the large entrance hall, five lounges, a dining room, a corridor-hallway, kitchen, service entrance, two bathrooms, a storage room and a technical room.
On the floor below there are three large halls, a large gallery opening onto the park, a kitchen, a dining room, two storage rooms, two bathrooms, three technical rooms and a cellar. On the first floor we find the sleeping area with five bedrooms, one of which has a panoramic veranda in antique iron, three wardrobe areas, five bathrooms, a splendid library, a storage room and a balcony on the main front. On the second floor there are two further bedrooms, a fitness room, a study, two bathrooms and the large terrace called dell′orologio, which offers a splendid view of the Florence plain. Finally, on the mezzanine floor there are the staff quarters, pantries, laundries, ironing rooms and further service rooms. In the same portion of the building there is a further unit for residential use and agricultural premises. The floors are connected to each other both by stairs and by an elevator. The villa has a private chapel with a polygonal plan, typical of the prestigious residences of the time and a clear example of seventeenth-century religious architecture. Among the annexes we find three structures used as an orangery, greenhouse, garage or technical rooms, as well as the caretaker′s house and various buildings for agricultural use.
The current appearance of this magnificent property, with the front surmounted by an elegant clock, was commissioned by Marchesa Nathalie Antinori at the beginning of the twentieth century, who made use of the work of her brother, the architect Egisto Paolo Fabbri, for the important restoration works, a well-known Cézanne collector.
An unrepeatable opportunity to live in a piece of Florence′s history, immersed in the Florentine countryside.
