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Florence Issue

A LIVING MUSEUM OF ART HISTORY click here to view full article listing

Four Seasons Hotel Firenze is a living museum of art history, set within the walled tranquillity of Florence’s largest private garden. The Hotel comprises two Renaissance palaces, whose previous residents include a Pope, an order of nuns, Italy’s first railway company, five centuries of Florentine nobility and a Viceroy of Egypt (who sold it when his harem was barred from moving in). Today, the Hotel’s colourful history unfolds through its ornately painted and crafted interiors, which have returned to their original beauty following seven years of painstaking restoration. The Hotel is located on the edge of Florence’s historic centre and occupies two protected buildings: the 15th century Palazzo della Gherardesca and the "Conventino", a 16th century Palazzo, which was once a convent. Between them lie over 11 acres (4.5 hectares) of botanical gardens – the Giardino della Gherardesca – one of the most beautiful and undiscovered green spaces on the right bank of the River Arno.

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A LIVING MUSEUM OF ART HISTORY

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HISTORY

1473 – Bartolomeo Scala, Chancellor of the Florentine Republic under Lorenzo il Magnifico, bought a house with large grounds bordering Via Capponi and Borgo Pinti. 1490 – …and commissioned the building of an exquisite Palazzo 1497 – Bartolomeo Scala died, leaving his son, Guiliano, as heir to the Palazzo.

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RESTORATION, ART & INTERIORS

The restoration of the Hotel has been strictly overseen by Florence’s Soprintendenza Per Il Patrimonio Storico Artistico (Superintendant for Artistic Historical Patrimony), Ministero per i Beni e le Attivita Culturali (Ministry for Fine Arts and Culture) and Sovraintendenza delle Belle Arti (Department of Fine Arts). One of the roles of these governmental agencies was to determine to which period artistic and cultural artefacts should be restored. As such, the artworks throughout the Hotel are testament to the many revolutions of artistic taste throughout the Palazzo’s and Conventino’s long history.

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THE GARDENS

GIARDINO DELLA GHERARDESCA

The 11 acre (4.5 hectare) Giardino della Gherardesca has existed as a garden since the late 15th century, and as a botanical garden for rare and endangered species since the early 19th century. In keeping with the guidelines of the Soprintendenza Per Il Patrimonio Storico Artistico (Superintendant for Artistic Historical Patrimony), Four Seasons has restored the garden to its 19th century Romantic-style – an artistic interlace of paths, lawns and copses punctuated with hillocks and pools. The statues, fountain, small Ionic temple and “Kaffeehaus” that can be found in the garden are all remaining aspects of the original Romantic design.

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DESTINATION

Florence is the cradle of the Italian Renaissance and one of the country’s most atmospheric and appealing cities. Founded by Julius Caesar in 59 BC, the city is the capital of Tuscany, the country’s most famous wine region that stretches from central Italy to the northwest coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Florence lies in the basin of the Arno river and is surrounded by spectacular countryside: the Apennines to the north and east; the olive, vine and cypress-clad hills of the Chianti region to the south and the Carmignano wine region and Valdarno plain to the west.

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ACCOMMODATIONS

The accommodation at Four Seasons Hotel Firenze maintains the integrity of the original layout of both the Palazzo and the Conventino. As such, no two of the 117 rooms and suites are alike; each has individual dimensions and window-sizes and many have idiosyncratic original features including frescoes, friezes and bas-reliefs, skylights and ceiling art, staircases, fireplaces and stoves. Guestrooms have been designed by Pierre Yves Rochon in two colour schemes, yellow and green, with many of the restored speciality suites taking their identity from their individual historic and artistic details.

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DINING

Il Palagio (seats 54 indoor and 40 outdoors on terrace) Central to Tuscany’s identity is its traditional cuisine, based on seasonal ingredients and fresh flavours. Il Palagio, the Hotel’s main restaurant, serves Italian fare with ingredients sourced from artisan producers. The lunch and dinner menu includes several primi piatti (first courses) and a selection of entrées inspired by the bountiful produce of the surrounding countryside.

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MEETINGS & FUNCTIONS

The business and meeting facilities at Four Seasons Hotel Firenze pay tribute to the city’s artistic heritage, with 758m2 (8159 sq ft.) of ornately frescoed indoor function and banquet space as well as extensive opportunities for outdoor events throughout the Hotel’s 11 acre (4.5 hectare) landscaped gardens.

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THE SPA

The Spa occupies a two-storey building with pillared façade in the Giardino della Gherardesca, overlooking the outdoor pool. Designed by Pierre Yves Rochon, the Spa’s ground floor Lobby and Lounge is furnished with a simple and elegant cream and black design, accented by classic artworks, statues and ornamental pillars. Nine treatment rooms are situated on the upper level of the main spa building. Contemporary glass mosaic walls and floors furnish the wet treatment rooms; the remainder are decorated with glossy white walls and waxed oak floors. All rooms feature floor to ceiling windows with tall, white shutters. The Grand Spa/Couple’s Suite is situated in a separate building and features an opulent design of parquet floors, pillars, corniced ceiling, uplighters and fireplace. It is furnished with two treatment tables, lounge area and freestanding bath with views across a private area of the garden through floor to ceiling windows.

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RECREATIONAL FACILITIES

Pool The Hotel’s outdoor pool is located within the gardens behind the Spa building. The pool deck is furnished with a whirlpool, deckchairs and cabanas and serves drinks from the adjacent Spa Lounge. Fitness Centre The two-level Fitness Centre is situated in a separate building next to the Spa and features all the latest state of the art “Technogym” exercise equipment. The Spa and Fitness Centre are connected underground via separate men’s and women’s changing rooms.

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PROFILES

PATRIZIO CIPOLLINI, GENERAL MANAGER

Tuscan-born Patrizio Cipollini took the helm of Four Seasons Hotel Firenze’s pre-opening team in 2007 having been at the company’s landmark property in Milano – its first in Europe – since it opened in 1993. “It has always been a dream of mine to be the opening General Manager for a Four Seasons Hotel in Italy” enthuses the proud nationalist. “But I never imagined I would be coming back to my home region to open a property as historic as this.”

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VITO MOLLICA, EXECUTIVE CHEF

Executive Chef Vito Mollica is a great advocate of the Italian ‘Slow Food’ movement, seeking to preserve the culinary ecology of his home nation by supporting small producers, old-style markets and local varieties. He bases his kitchen philosophy on ‘knowing the man behind the produce’, personally scouring the markets and Tuscan countryside for small, local producers who share his passion for quality. ‘The main value of any dish is the quality of the ingredients’, he explains. ‘If they have been produced with care, it comes through in the taste. Then the more simply you cook the ingredients, the more you will allow the flavour to come through.’

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