Knight's Mansion

Description

The garden is decorated with low boxwood hedges that create geometric shapes and enclose rare and fragrant species of dahlias and roses, which bloom between May and June. The central fountain is called the Fountain of the Monkeys because of the three bronze monkeys at the base of the fountain itself, by Giambologna; in the center of the basin water gushes from a marble putto, attributed to Pierino da Vinci or Tribolo. Here is the Casino del Cavaliere, a mansion built around 1700 on commission by Cosimo III, where Cardinal Leopoldo de' Medici held artistic and literary conversations, and where Gian Gastone had his retreat. Its present sober forms, with walls decorated by painted cornices and a cornice adorned with terracotta vases and statues, are due to Zanobi del Rosso's arrangement on behalf of the Lorraines, who used it as a venue for the court's summer festivities. It has been home since 1973 to the Porcelain Museum. The privileged position overlooking the back of the Boboli hill still offers gentle panoramic views as far as the Torre del Gallo, with farmland partly planted with olive trees. Underneath the Casino del Cavaliere there is a large water deposit known as the Trout Depot, from which the pipes for irrigating the entire garden depart.