Note sul collezionismo del principecardinale Francesco Maria de’ Medici. Nuovi documenti su Andrea Scacciati, Pietro Dandini, Francesco Corallo, Antonio Ugolini, Livio Mehus, Niccolò Cassana, Balthasar Permoser, Gaetano Giulio Zumbo e altri
Riccardo Spinelli
Francesco Maria de’ Medici, born in 1660, second son of the Grand Duke Ferdinando II de’ Medici and Vittoria della Rovere, is one of the less known member of the Medici Family, even if his role in eighteenth century Florence was absolutely relevant. He became a cardinal in 1686, but he was forced to quit the porpora in 1709 to marry a princess of Gonzaga di Guastalla, in order to give an heir to the throne of Tuscany. Unfortunately Francesco Maria died two years later, in 1711, leaving most of his belongings to the Congregazione of San Giovanni Battista of Florence, which decided to sell the art collection of the donor. This article aims to shed new light on the artistic patronage of Francesco Maria de’ Medici whose taste (specially for painting and sculpture) was very original. The article is the first step of a broader research program which will be accomplished soon.