500 years since the death of Leonardo da Vinci

On 2 May, at Palazzo Gondi, the commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci was held.

The Historical Procession of the Florentine Republic and of the Calcio Storico Fiorentino contributed to the cultural initiatives dedicated to the commemoration of Leonardo da Vinci by organising - together with the City of Florence, the Protocol Office of Palazzo Vecchio, the Mayor's Office, the Department for Popular Traditions and the Rotary Club Firenze, and with the essential support and generosity of the Gondi family and their Palazzo - a commemorative moment on the day of Leonardo's death (2 May 1519), laying a Laurel Wreath on the site where the Master lived with his father and where the corner of the present-day Palazzo Gondi was later built.

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The inscription recalling this place stands right at the entrance of the palazzo on Via de' Gondi, and the family made the courtyard available for the Procession to line up and for the commemorative ceremony.

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Leonardo da Vinci lived in a tower demolished to widen Via dei Gondi, rented by his father ser Piero for 30 florins a year, first from the Arte dei Mercatanti and then from the Gondi. In memory of this prestigious presence, an inscription composed by Cesare Guasti was placed in the entrance hall on Via de' Gondi:

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LEONARDO DA VINCI
VISSE LA BENAUGURATA GIOVINEZZA
IN UNA CASA DELL'ARTE DEI MERCATANTI
CHE DA GIULIANO GONDI FU COMPRATA E DISFATTA
NEL MURARE QUESTO PALAGIO
AL QUALE DANDOSI PERFEZIONE NEL MDCCCLXXIII
IL COMUNE E IL SIGNORE CONCORDI
VOLLERO CHE LA MEMORIA DI TANTO NOME AL NOBILE E VAGO EDIFICIO
ACCRESCESSERO DECORO

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