The Refectory of the San Marco Museum in piazza San Marco 3 reopens with a new layout, having been partly inaccessible to the public since October 2023 due to the lifting of the terracotta floor. Restoration works on the hall and the large fresco by Sogliani have also been completed, thanks to a donation by Michael W. Scherb and his family.
The refectory was the room in which the friars consumed meals together every day. The architecture is partly Gothic, and dates to the time of the Silvestrini, who lived in these rooms before the arrival of the Dominicans. The end wall is entirely painted with a fresco by Giovanni Antonio Sogliani, depicting the Providence of the Dominicans surmounted by a Crucifixion and saints, created in 1536. Restoration was carried out on the painting, with the last restoration having been carried out by Dino Dini in the 1970s after it had been damaged in the devastating flood of 1966.
The old lighting system has been replaced by a new system positioned on tracks suspended from the ceiling, consisting of LED spotlights oriented towards the paintings and the fresco with indirect lighting that highlights the architectural space. The new lighting guarantees optimal visibility, while also offering significant energy savings. Following tests that enabled the previous colours to be identified, the original grey tone of the cross-vaults has been reinstated. The spacing and captions of the paintings has been aligned with the layout already used for the Beato Angelico room, with benches placed in the room to offer visitors greater comfort while admiring the works.
The recent renovations follow works already carried out on the Beato Angelico room, the Savonarola rooms and the small Refectory with the fresco by Ghirlandaio.
Stefano Casciu, Director of the Tuscan Museum System, commented, “Michael accepted our proposal with great generosity, granting us complete freedom and demonstrating the utmost trust, while also remaining attentive and interested in the work in progress, with frequent visits and regular contact during the intervention. For us, the relationship with him was an ideal example of fruitful collaboration between the public and private sectors, thanks to which the San Marco Museum and its public were able to reclaim a fundamental space that has been long denied but is of considerable importance for Florentine architecture, history and art. It’s a museum space that holds the magnificent fresco by Giovanni Antonio Sogliani, that has now been fully restored, and is also home to the new display of sixteenth-century paintings by the Scuola di San Marco, with works by Sogliani himself, Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio, Fra’ Paolino, Mariotto Albertinelli and Suor Plautilla Nelli, enhanced by new lighting and detailed by new information devices in both Italian and English.”
Michael W. Scherb added, “We are grateful to the Ministry of Culture for offering us the opportunity to support this stimulating restoration. Every year, we support a different cultural institution around the world, and San Marco is our third project. We were fascinated by the history and beauty of the room and are proud that Florentines and art lovers can fully experience it. For a city that has given so much to humanity, it’s an honor to return the favor.”