The Pazzi Conspiracy
Power, Violence and Art in Renaissance-Era Florence

24.10.2025 to 20.09.2026
Bode-Museum

On 26 April 1478, Lorenzo and Giuliano de’ Medici were attacked in the chancel of the Duomo of Florence. Giuliano was killed in the attack, while Lorenzo survived and went on to take revenge on the people responsible for masterminding the conspiracy – most notably the Pazzi family. This exhibition seeks to trace the story with the help of items from the collections of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin.

The Münzkabinett houses a selection of medals that depict the key figures involved in the affair, many of whom have also been immortalised in portraits that are now held in the collections of the Skulpturensammlung and the Gemäldegalerie – beginning with Giuliano, whose likeness Sandro Botticelli painted with a downcast gaze after his untimely death. The Pazzi Conspiracy constitutes a tragic and defining episode of the Florentine Quattrocento that epitomises the significance of the Italian Renaissance as an age in which violent political and religious conflicts were translated into unforgettable works of art.


A special exhibition of the Münzkabinett and the Skulpturensammlung – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin

Mondayclosed
Tuesday10 am to 5 pm
Wednesday10 am to 5 pm
Thursday10 am to 5 pm
Friday10 am to 5 pm
Saturday10 am to 6 pm
Sunday10 am to 6 pm

Visitor Entrance

Am Kupfergraben, Eingang über die Monbijoubrücke
10178 Berlin

U-Bahn: Friedrichstraße
S-Bahn: Friedrichstraße, Hackescher Markt
Tram: Am Kupfergraben, Hackescher Markt
Bus: Staatsoper, Lustgarten, Friedrichstraße

partially wheelchair accessible

Tel 030 - 266 42 42 42 (Mon - Fri, 9 am - 4 pm)
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