Since
1973, the Porcelain Museum, which is a section
of the Silver Museum, is located in the "Casino
del Cavaliere", built in the 17th century
at the top of the hill that overlooks the Gardens
of Boboli, which was chosen as a retreat for the
Grand Duke. The homogeneous collections comprises
mainly porcelain tableware belonging to the royal
families that ruled Tuscany (Medici, Lorraine,
Savoy), thus clearly reflecting their tastes.
The collection is divided by periods, nations
and manufacturers. There are several outstanding
examples of Italian porcelain objects produced
in Doccia, which were especially used by the Grand
ducal family for large services of daily use,
and at the Royal Manufactory of Naples.
Foreign objects include fine table sets from Vienna
and from the German Manufactory of Meissen, in
addition to French porcelain from Vincennes and
Sèvres, brought to the Pitti Palace by
the Savoy House from the royal palace of Parma.
The Grand Duchess of Parma, Luisa Elisabetta,
was in fact the daughter of Luis XV. Some of the
objects are also gifts from Napoleon to his sister
Elisa Baciocchi, Grand Duchess of Tuscany from
1809 to 1814.
The oldest pieces of the collections are those
that once belonged to Gian Gastone, the last Medici
Grand Duke (1671 -1737) produced in the Manufactory
of Meissen.
|
