Ancient villa of great prestige dating back to 1427 not far from Florence which belonged to one of the great Tuscan wine families from the end of the nineteenth century to the middle of the last century and where the famous Mona Lisa lived, known as “La Gioconda”. Surrounding the property are 27 hectares of land with swimming pool, tennis court and rose garden.
Location
The villa is located in the municipality of Scandicci, about 9 km west of Florence and thanks to its proximity to the city and the wealth of green areas it is one of the places with the highest density of important villas in the Florentine hinterland. Area easily reachable by car and in a proximity to the Florence airport, which accepts both scheduled flights and private jets.
Historical background
This beautiful villa is rich of history. From here seems to be Baldo d’Aguglione, a Florentine jurist and politician, a contemporary of Dante, that the Poet quotes twice in the Divine Comedy as the “villan d’Aguglion”. It was, in fact, the d 'Aguglione to issue the sentence on 2 September 1311, which excluded Dante from the amnesty, preventing him from returning home from exile. From 1498 to 1517 it was owned by the powerful Del Giocondo family to which belonged the famous Monna Lisa, wife of Francesco del Giocondo, portrayed by Leonardo Da Vinci around 1505 and called "La Gioconda". The current appearance of the villa and garden is the wish of the Marquess Nathalie Antinori, which in the beginning of the 20th century renewed it, helped by her brother Egisto Paolo Fabbri, architect, artist, but above all a great collector of Cézanne, of whom he came to own 32 very valuated paintings. The beautiful façade of the villa appears on the label of one of the most famous Tuscan wines that has made the history of “Chianti Classico“ in the world.
Description
This spectacular 15th century building complex covers an area of approximately 27 hectares, and includes the main villa on three floors above ground and one partially underground, as well as various other outbuildings including, the guardian's house, the lemon-house, the cellars , the olive house and the garage for a total of about 4000 square meters.
The main body of the mansion, of about 2800 square meters, consists on the ground floor of 5 living rooms, a living-dining room, large kitchen, a corridor-hallway, a restroom, technical room and double entrance - large main entrance and a service entrance. On the first floor there is a sleeping area composed of 5 bedrooms with respective bathrooms and wardrobe rooms, a large library, a panoramic veranda in wrought iron and glass and a small balcony on the main front. On the second floor there are 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a study room and a gym in addition to the terrace which is called "Dell'orologio and from which you can see the whole Florence and. On the partially underground floor there is a room used as a kitchen, a dining room, two lounge rooms, the splendid hall and the "Medici" gallery which faces directly the garden of the villa. At this level there are also two storage rooms, two bathrooms, a cellar and a technical room. There is also a mezzanine floor between the first and second floors for service personnel and consists of three bedrooms, two bathrooms, pantry rooms, kitchen, dining room, laundries, ironing rooms and storage rooms. The floors are connected to each other not only by beautiful internal stairs, but also by a new elevator.
This unique luxury villa is enriched by the private chapel with a polygonal layout, typical of the prestigious residences of that time being a clear example of seventeenth-century devotional architecture. Among the annexed buildings, there are three structures used as limoniaia – typical lemon trees houses, of 200sqm, greenhouse, garage and technical rooms, the single-family residence on 1 level of the guardian of 80sqm, divided into 4 rooms. Also there are several buildings for agricultural use: one of 25sqm with 3 rooms used as shelter for farm animals, storage of small equipment and various garden materials with a bathroom; another 64 sqm farm building on one level and divided into two rooms with separate entrances; third building of 77 square meters currently used as storage equipment and material for agricultural activity and finally one of 43 sqm used for agricultural machinery.
Outdoor spaces
The main entrance of the villa is through an impressive iron gate that opens onto an avenue of cypresses up to the Italian garden with ornamental plants and tanks, which was designed by the famous English architect Cecil Pinsent, who gave it the character of a real park with roses, essences of tall trees and symmetrical flower beds. And from which a double ramp staircase leads to the level of the dwelling.
In the northern part of the garden there is a 70sqm tennis court with a clubhouse with toilets and changing rooms. In the south-east there is a swimming pool, while in the vicinity of one of the entrances there is the. A large forest surrounds and protects this villa.
State and finishes
The whole complex is in excellent condition and perfectly maintained, equipped with an alarm system connected to a surveillance center, a telephone system with three lines, a heating system powered by methane gas and summer air conditioning.
The added values in the finishes are the high ceilings, partly in dumpsters, with arches and exposed beams; wooden fixtures, the windows and doors are framed with frescoes, relics in wood and stone; several wood-burning fireplaces; bathrooms finished with marble and precious materials.
Potential use
The property, despite its size, can be used as a residence for an important family and without doubt as a luxury relays or as a representative villa for receptions and events.