The Fashion and Costume Museum
Galleria del Costume
The Costume museum is housed in the small building of the Meridiana in Pitti Palace. This building was begun under Grand Duke Pietro Leopoldo in 1776 and ended in 1840, when it was chosen as the residence of the family that then ruled Tuscany. Later, it came to house the Savoy as well. The Lorraine/Savoy rooms display the exhibitions of the collections of historical clothes and accessories that had previously been stored in the palace´s warehouses.
The collections cover the period between the 18th century and the present day. The recent restoration of the funeral garments of Grand Duke Cosimo I, of Eleonora of Toledo, and of her son, Don Garzia, has further enriched the museum with some rare examples of clothing from the 16th century.
The rooms, equipped with air-conditioned display stands, exhibit different selections of clothes in order to represent the evolution of fashion. Some of the rooms, like the ball room, are instead used for temporary exhibitions. The decision to change the displayed clothes every two years originates from the need to guarantee their preservation, but also offers the opportunity to display more of the patrimony preserved in the depository, mostly from private donors.
The collections of the Costume museum also include a group of about ninety theater costumes belonging to the Sartoria Tirelli, a famous Florentine dress shop. These were given to the museum, together with a large amount of historical clothes, by Umberto Tirelli. Nearby is a fabric restoration laboratory.
The collections cover the period between the 18th century and the present day. The recent restoration of the funeral garments of Grand Duke Cosimo I, of Eleonora of Toledo, and of her son, Don Garzia, has further enriched the museum with some rare examples of clothing from the 16th century.
The rooms, equipped with air-conditioned display stands, exhibit different selections of clothes in order to represent the evolution of fashion. Some of the rooms, like the ball room, are instead used for temporary exhibitions. The decision to change the displayed clothes every two years originates from the need to guarantee their preservation, but also offers the opportunity to display more of the patrimony preserved in the depository, mostly from private donors.
The collections of the Costume museum also include a group of about ninety theater costumes belonging to the Sartoria Tirelli, a famous Florentine dress shop. These were given to the museum, together with a large amount of historical clothes, by Umberto Tirelli. Nearby is a fabric restoration laboratory.