This imposing 15th century building has been restored to a very high standard providing spacious apartments ranging in size from 115 m2 to 323 m2, with private parking, outside space, terrace or use of the manicured communal gardens.
Located just 5 minutes from the charming medieval town of Impruneta where one finds a range of services and some excellent restaurants. Central Florence is just 20 minutes away and can be accessed by car or public transport. In the other direction one can visit the traditional towns and vineyards of the Chianti region, under 15 minutes from the property.
The Villa
The villa (approx. 2,400 m2), a former convent, is split into 12 apartments distributed on three floors. All floors are accessed by elevator and there is a tunnel connecting the basement level with the external private parking area.
On the basement level there is also an events space, a fitness room with sauna and shower and technical rooms for all the apartments' utilities.
All the apartments have spacious living/dining areas and a bathroom for every bedroom. Several of the apartments have private terraces and the ground floor apartments have direct access onto the manicured gardens and charming internal courtyards. The apartments are left to 'builders finish' allowing the new owner to chose bathroom suites and flooring.
The entrance hallway and corridors have been finished with terracotta flooring, original fresco works have also been restored and elegant lighting has been installed in keeping with the grandeur of the property.
The original 'Limonaia' which runs adjacent to the formal gardens could be used as two further apartments or a swimming pool could be added with doors opening onto the garden, allowing for both summer and winter use.
The History
The property, built in the fourteenth century, was part of a hospital located not far from Florence. In the 15th century the building was purchased (together with a second building located nearby) by a noble Florentine family who converted the building into a private villa. Due to financial difficulties, the family was forced to sell the villa in 1516 first to the Salvetti d’Oltrarno and finally to the Bandi family.
The last descendants of the family had established (or so they say) that the villa would be given as a gift to the friars if his wife died first, while on the contrary the building would be donated to the Dominican Sisters of Santa Caterina da Siena if the husband died first. When Mr. Bandi died in 1902, the pact was respected and the building passed to the nuns, before becoming private property again.
The building has an essentially quadrangular shape, with a stone courtyard in the center and a manicured garden with a fountain at the back. The façade is plastered and painted white with lintels and cornices in pietra serena, a typical combination visible in the buildings of the Florentine area.
Location
Florence (13km; 25 min), Greve in Chianti (18km; 25 min), the turreted San Gimignano (50km; 50 min), medieval Siena (69km; min), Lucca with its fortifications (82km; 55 min) and Pisa with its famous tower (92km; 1h 15 min).
The most convenient airports to reach the property are Florence Peretola (20km; 20 min), Pisa Galilei (88km; 1h 5min), Bologna Marconi (108km; 1h 20 min) and Perugia Sant’Egidio (162km; 1h 45min).
Majestic villa with extensive grounds for sale within a few minutes of the centre of Florence.