Sala del Cinquecento

With the growth of his stature and cultural ambitions when he was compiling and writing his book, the Lives of the Artists, the nature of Vasari’s commissions fundamentally altered in the final thirty years of his life, from individual works such as altarpieces to grand enterprises in different media requiring a controlling hand over a large body of assistants. To accomplish these great projects he organized a vast workshop on a scale unprecedented in Florence.

The best example of the grand enterprises are the ceiling and walls of the main room, the Sala del Cinquecento, in the Palazzo del Signoria in Florence, completed 1565. The ceiling is divided into 39 panels depicting episodes from the history of Florence and the Grand-duchy of Tuscany. Along the upper part of the walls are battle scenes by Vasari, below are a series of statues and marble groups.