The Terre degli Uffizi project is making a halt at the Museo di Arte Sacra in the Valdelsa. Adjacent to the church of San Piero in Mercato, the museum was establishd in the 1990s to host works of art from churches in the neighbourhood no longer considered safe against theft and damage.
Protecting works of art is also the link between Montespertoli and the Gallerie degli Uffizi’s panel depicting Christ the Man of Sorrows and Stories from the Life of St. Peter Martyr. During World War II, from 1942 to 1945, a large part of the art collections from Florence’s museums were held for safety in the Castle of Montegufoni in Montespertoli and other places considered sufficiently safe such as the Eremo di Camaldoli or the Castle of Poppi. Montegufoni’s illustrious guests included such masterpieces as Cimabue’s and Giotto’s two versions of the Maestà, Paolo Uccello’s Battle of San Romano and Botticelli’s Spring.
The return to Montespertoli of the Gallerie degli Uffizi predella, a 15th century Florentine work close in type and cultural background to various paintings in the Museo di Arte Sacra, is a tribute to the area and to the memory of all those who helped safeguard our art heritage during the war, in the sincere hope that such circumstances never arise again.
