Bardini Garden

Located in the Oltrarno district, a short distance from the more famous Boboli Gardens, the Bardini Garden is one of the hidden beauties of Florence both from natural and architectural points of view. It extends over the large hilly area that also includes Piazzale Michelangelo, Forte Belvedere and the Rose Garden.

During the Middle Ages this area was owned by the Mozzi family, a very powerful family of bankers, who purchased a series of horti (garden/field) to be used as a vegetable garden and vineyard, and which bordered their own palace located in an annexed large piece of land they possessed.

Over the centuries, the two large plots of land changed owners several times and experienced fluctuating periods between degradation and renewal. In the first half of the 1600s Villa Manadora was built, afterwards purchased by Giacomo Le Blac who redeveloped the entire area creating the English garden. At the end of the nineteenth century, the Mozzi family returned to being the sole owners of the two properties which, as many travelers testified, were in a state of great abandonment.

In 1913, the antiquarian Stefano Bardini bought the entire area from the Mozzi family: the palace, the garden and the Villa Manadora. Bardini and his renovations mark the heyday of the entire estate. He had an avenue built to reach the villa from the Lungarni by car, and from that moment on the mansion was called Villa Bardini.

Recently, after many years of neglect, the Villa was completely renovated and inside the grounds the Annigoni Museum, dedicated to the artist Pietro Annigoni, was opened to the public as well.

The garden boasts a huge variety of flora: azaleas, roses, hydrangeas, irises, camellias and even fruit trees which welcome the visitor with their colors and scents. In particular, one of the most famous attractions is undoubtedly the wisteria tunnel, which is located at the top of a wonderful baroque staircase.

From the Loggia del Belvedere the visitor can appreciate all the beauty of Florence. In fact, the Bardini Garden is recommended for those who are looking for breathtaking views of the city and its monuments.