Secrets of the Salone dei Cinquecento: A chamber of art, history, and mystery

Salone dei Cinquecento, also known as the Hall of the Five Hundred, is the grandest space in Palazzo Vecchio. Created in the late 15th century for the Florentine Republic’s 500-member assembly, this meeting hall stands as a living tapestry of the power, artistic genius, and political intrigue of the Renaissance.

Origins and evolution

When Girolamo Savonarola tried to establish a theocratic and rudimentary form of democratic government, he identified 500 men (a Grand Council) to represent all the citizens of Florence. This assembly would debate, administrate, and manage the functioning of the city. Under his directive, the hall was designed by Simone del Pollaiolo, and maintained its original use up until Savonarola’s imprisonment and execution in 1498 – following which the city shifted back to a monarchic system under the Medicis. 

Giorgio Vasari, Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici’s favored artist and architect, transformed and expanded the Salone dei Cinquecento in the 16th century, adding elaborate frescoes, gilded ceilings, and monumental sculptures that glorify Medici rule. The hall now measures a staggering 54 meters in length, 23 meters in width, and 18 meters in height. Its scale reflects the ambitions of Florence’s rulers.

Lost Leonardo: The Battle of Anghiari mystery

One of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the hall is the lost masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci. Let's set the scene. In 1503, the Republic of Florence commissioned artistic archrivals Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo to paint battle scenes on opposing walls. Neither of them completed their undertaking.

While Michelangelo abandoned his project early on, Leonardo began The Battle of Anghiari, a dynamic composition capturing the chaos of war. Using an experimental technique with wax that proved disastrous, the painting deteriorated quickly, and Vasari later covered the wall with his own frescoes.

Yet, whispers of the lost Leonardo persist. Some believe that Vasari, out of reverence for the master, did not destroy the painting but instead concealed it beneath his own work — subtly inscribed with the phrase Cerca Trova ("Seek and You Shall Find").

Seek and you shall find: the layers

The 10 little white letters tucked away on a tiny green flag in the gigantic Battle of Marciano fresco fuels speculation that Leonardo’s masterpiece might still exist beneath Vasari’s brushstrokes. This led some specialists to drill tiny holes into the fresco to check for evidence of Da Vinci’s distinctive painting technique. The project was abandoned mid-way due to a lack of both consensus and compelling evidence.

Whether there’s a lost masterpiece or not, the history of this phrase within the context of the painting is interesting in its own right. The forces of Siena carried green flags, some of which were inscribed with Dante’s verse: “He goes in search of freedom, which is so dear, As he who gives his life for it would know”. Cerca Trova therefore becomes a sardonically smug retort, at ‘seeking and finding’ defeat instead of freedom. Fun fact: This phrase and its anagram “Catrovacer” serve a crucial function in Dan Brown’s novel Inferno and its film adaptation.

Secret Passages and the hidden study of Francesco I

The Salone dei Cinquecento is not just a spectacle of art—it is also a gateway to hidden chambers and passageways. One of the most intriguing is the Studiolo of Francesco I de’ Medici, a small private study concealed high up behind a wall in the grand hall.

This jewel box of a room, designed in the 1570s, is adorned with intricate Mannerist paintings. Wooden panels disguise secret storage spaces, including the treasury or Tesoretto of Cosimo I. The young Duke used this vantage point to spy on assemblies taking place in the Hall of the 500. Serving as a retreat for the enigmatic Medici ruler, it is linked to the hidden corridors of the Palazzo Vecchio, which once allowed secretive movements within the fortress-like structure. You can only access the Secret Passages and the Studiolo on an exclusive tour.

Viewpoints and obscure details

For those who take the time to truly absorb the Salone dei Cinquecento, several hidden gems await discovery:

• The inverted perspective of Vasari’s ceiling paintings—stand in different spots, and the illusion shifts, revealing new dimensions to Cosimo I’s glorification.
• The heraldic symbols of Florence and the Medici family embedded throughout the artwork.
• The trapdoor in the floor, leading to subterranean rooms with medieval remnants.