The 14th Century building commissioned by Cosimo il Vecchio was originally owned by the Lippi family. The villa passed to the Medici family in the 15th Century and saw the death in 1429 of Lorenzo the Magnificent. Lorenzo declared it his favourite residence and made it the head of the Neoplatonic Academy. Cosimo liked to surround himself with prominent scholars such as Marsilio Ficino, Angelo Poliziano and Pico della Mirandola - he transferred his library and other collections here. Many alterations by Medici and Lorenzo and interventions by previous owners, mean there is no trace of the original gardens.
