Florence Museums Open on the May 1 Holiday

May 1 is a national Italian holiday, and many museums will be closed.  A few, will welcome visitors in Florence on Europe’s Labor Day.

State-run museums that will be open include the San Marco museum, which showcases frescoes by Beato Angelico; the San Salvi refectory, known for a Last Supper by Andrea del Sarto; the Orsanmichele and the Bardini Garden.  City-run museums which will be accessible comprise Palazzo Vecchio (9 am – 11 pm); city hall’s Arnolfo Tower; the Novecento Museum of 20th Century Art (11 am – 7 pm); Santa Maria Novella with the addition of Chiostro Grande and the Pope’s Chapel (9 am – 7 pm); the Brancacci Chapel, which represents a cornerstone in Italian art thanks to the Masaccio, Masolino and Filippo Lippi frescoes depicting episodes from the Life of St. Peter; and the Salvatore Romano Foundation of Medieval Art in piazza Santo Spirito.

Florence’s church, which house a considerable number of art works will also be accessible on May 1 as well as the Medici villas: Petraia, Castello, Poggio a Caiano and Cerreto Guidi.