MAIANO, Benedetto da
(b. 1442, Firenze, d. 1497, Firenze)

Palazzo Strozzi: Façade and right side

1489-1503
Photo
Piazza degli Strozzi, Florence

The Palazzo Strozzi in Florence was begun in 1489 by Benedetto da Maiano, for Filippo Strozzi the Elder, a rival of the Medici. The palace was left incomplete by Simone del Pollaiolo (Il Cronaca), who was in charge of the construction of the palace until 1504.

The palace, which in its gigantic scale and massive bulk dwarfs any other residence in Florence, represents the culmination of the Florentine palace type. The design is attributed to Benedetto da Maiano, but the extant wooden model was made by Giuliano da Sangallo, and the colossal cornice and the courtyard were added by Il Cronaca, who succeeded Benedetto as architect. Giuliano da Sangallo's wooden model established the basic plan (bilaterally symmetrical to provide houses for Strozzi's sons from his two marriages) and the three-storey rusticated façade.

The palace, built in the heart of Florence, is Filippo Strozzi's other great commission besides his burial chapel in Santa Maria Novella.

View the section of Palazzo Strozzi, Florence.