An exhibition at Palazzo Vecchio celebrates the civic side of the author of the Decameron
From November 6, 2025, to January 6, 2026, the Palazzo Vecchio Museum will host the exhibition Boccaccio politico per la città di Firenze (Boccaccio, politician for the city of Florence), an exhibition that presents the great author of the Decameron in a new light: that of a public and civic figure. The event, promoted by the City of Florence and organized by the MUS.E Foundation on the occasion of the 650th anniversary of the death of Giovanni Boccaccio (1375–2025), is sponsored by the Ente Nazionale Giovanni Boccaccio and in collaboration with the State Archives of Florence. Curated by Lorenzo Tanzini with scientific coordination by Carlo Francini and Valentina Zucchi, the exhibition invites the public to rediscover Boccaccio as a protagonist of 14th-century Florentine political life, including diplomatic assignments, missions, and administrative roles.
The political face of Giovanni Boccaccio
Through documents, manuscripts, and iconographic evidence, the exhibition reconstructs the civic and institutional career of the poet from Certaldo, revealing the depth of a man who put his literary education at the service of the community. The documents on display show Boccaccio engaged in the public life of the City of Florence, called upon to manage delicate missions, represent the city in diplomatic circles, and contribute to the construction of the civic values of the time.
The chosen venue, the Sala dei Gigli in Palazzo Vecchio, lends symbolic value to the exhibition. Here, at the end of the 14th century, the chancellor Coluccio Salutati commissioned the famous cycle of illustrious men that brought together heroes, sovereigns, and Tuscan poets such as Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio himself, to inspire the Florentine rulers. In this context, the exhibition is a natural continuation of the project dedicated to Dante in 2021, continuing the dialogue between culture, politics, and civic sense.
Culture as a tool of government
For the councilor for culture, Giovanni Bettarini, the exhibition offers “an extraordinary opportunity to rediscover the civic power of culture.” Boccaccio, explains Bettarini, “is not only the poet of man and love, but also an intellectual who helped define the civic values of his time. Through documents and rare manuscripts, the exhibition reveals how knowledge was an essential component of good governance in the Middle Ages.“
Scientific coordinator Carlo Francini emphasizes how the initiative ”celebrates not only the writer, but also the citizen committed to serving the community, at the origin of a humanistic tradition that would later see protagonists such as Salutati, Bruni, and Machiavelli.” Valentina Zucchi, who oversaw the scientific project, also highlights “the value of exempla virtutum, examples of virtue intended to inspire the rulers of Humanism. Boccaccio, through his work and his actions, embodies the perfect balance between words and civic responsibility.
Curator Lorenzo Tanzini observes how “Boccaccio’s public experiences, highlighted by international research, reveal the extraordinary vitality of 14th-century Florence, where literature and politics were deeply intertwined.”
Documents and testimonies from 14th-century Florence
The exhibition brings together prestigious loans from institutions such as the State Archives of Florence, the National Central Library, the Medicea Laurenziana Library, and the Capitolare Library of Verona. Among the documents on display are Boccaccio’s tax obligations as a Florentine citizen, the deed of purchase of Prato by Florence, in which he participated as a witness, and the diplomatic mandates attesting to his activity as ambassador to popes and European princes.
The illuminated manuscripts on display depict Boccaccio in the chair, teaching or conversing with the emperor, up to the famous portrait of Filostrato preserved in the National Central Library. A section at the State Archives explores the functioning of the 14th-century civic machine through the bags of the Florentine quarters, from which the names of citizens destined for public office were drawn, and the provision of the government that sanctioned the desire to honor the city’s illustrious intellectuals, including Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio himself, in the Duomo.
The public offices of the poet from Certaldo
Giovanni Boccaccio’s first important office dates back to 1351, when he was called to the Camera del Comune, the administrative heart of the city. In the following months, thanks to his reputation as a cultured and respected man, he was entrusted with diplomatic missions in Romagna, Milan, and to the Duke of Bavaria, Ludovico. His embassies to Ravenna, where he met Dante’s daughter, Sister Beatrice, and to Padua, where he delivered to his master Francesco Petrarca the proposal—never accepted—to return to Florence, were unforgettable.
In 1352, Boccaccio played a key role in the bread tax, which was fundamental to the city’s food supply, while in 1355 he translated the city statutes into the vernacular with the aim of making the principles of Florentine law accessible to all. In the last years of his life, the Signoria entrusted him with the public reading of the Divine Comedy (1373–1374), thus crowning a career that combined culture, commitment, and civic spirit.
A journey through research, culture, and identity
With loans from Florentine and national institutions, Boccaccio politico per la città di Firenze (Boccaccio, politician for the city of Florence) recounts the link between culture and public administration, showing how literature was an integral part of political life in the 14th century. The exhibition offers a contemporary reflection on the importance of intellectuals’ civic engagement and the role of knowledge in the construction of collective identity.
Throughout the duration of the exhibition, there will be meetings and thematic tours curated by scholars and university professors, dedicated to the figure of Boccaccio in Florentine institutions, his relationship with Dante, and his political legacy. In December and January, special urban itineraries will lead visitors on a discovery of Boccaccio’s places in the heart of the historic center, in collaboration with the Florence World Heritage Office and Relations with UNESCO.
With Boccaccio politico per la città di Firenze (Boccaccio, politician for the city of Florence), the Tuscan capital renews its link with great literature, celebrating an author who knew how to combine poetry, diplomacy, and public commitment. This is a unique opportunity to rediscover, through original manuscripts and documents, how culture can still be a tool for dialogue, participation, and active citizenship today.
Information and opening hours
The exhibition is open from November 6, 2025, to January 6, 2026, at the Palazzo Vecchio Museum, in Piazza della Signoria 1. It is open every day from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information and reservations, visit www.musefirenze.it or email info@musefirenze.it.
