The history

The first records of Villa La Massa date back to the end of the 13th century. In 1525, Villa La Massa became the summer residence of Santi Landini, a famous Editor belonging to the Florentine aristocracy.

The Villa remained within the Landini family until 1788, when it was sold to Cardinal Giovanni Rinuccini. Upon his death, the property was inherited by his nephew Alessandro, who renovated the villa and added new architectural elements between 1805 and 1810. He had four towers built at the corners of the villa, enlarged the grand staircase, and modified the chapel to align it with the style of the period.

The Rinuccinis lived in the villa until 1826, when it was sold to Lady Catherine Hombert Ruffié Planche. The recently discovered frescoes on the ground floor and second floor of the Villa were most likely requested by Lady Hombert, who had a great artistic taste. For example, the pastel blue used by the color dealer M. Guinet in 1828 was soon to become very fashionable.

In 1856 Countess Bierlinska, daughter of the Grand maréchal Conte Gonusza Bobrinsky, purchased the property. Along with the Demidoffs and the Boutourlines, the Bobrinskys were part of the Russian aristocracy who settled in Florence at the end of the 18th century.

Villa La Massa later became the property of John Goldsmith and eventually the Sears family who transformed it into a luxury hotel in 1953. Since then, many famous guests have stayed at Villa La Massa: Gregory Peck, Winston Churchill, Barbara Hutton, Elisabeth Taylor and Richard Burton – just to mention a few. In 1992, David Bowie and Iman celebrated their wedding at Villa La Massa.

Since Villa d’Este Hotels purchased the villa in 1998, the entire property has been completely restored to add new luster to this splendid old mansion.