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In leaving I Tatti to Harvard, Berenson wished to establish a center of scholarship that would advance humanistic learning throughout the world and increase understanding of the values by which civilizations develop and survive. He particularly wanted to give younger scholars at a critical point in their careers the opportunity to develop and expand their interests and talents. The Harvard University Center for Italian Renaissance Studies at Villa I Tatti is devoted to advanced study of the Italian Renaissance in all its aspects: the history of art; political, economic, and social history; the history of science, philosophy, and religion; and the history of literature and music. Each year an international selection committee meets in Cambridge, Mass., to select fifteen post-doctoral scholars in the early stages of their careers to become year-long I Tatti Fellows. In addition, the I Tatti scholarly community includes Research Associates and Visiting Professors, as well as several Craig Hugh Smyth Visiting Fellows and Outreach Visiting Fellows, who stay for periods of three to six months. The members of the academic community come from institutions across North America, Europe and Australia. Normally, they are members of university and college faculties or of library and museum staffs. Representing a wide variety of interests and methods within the broad area of Renaissance studies, they come to I Tatti for independent study and research both at the Biblioteca Berenson and in other libraries, archives, and collections in Florence and throughout Italy, as well as for the opportunity to think and write, free from their usual academic responsibilities. Villa I Tatti provides the resources of its unique library, which contains approximately 160,000 volumes and an archive of more than 300,000 photographs and other visual materials (the Fototeca Berenson); the library also subscribes to over 600 learned journals. Each I Tatti Fellow is given a study and the opportunity to associate daily with other members of the I Tatti community as well as with the many distinguished Renaissance scholars who continually visit and use the library. A regular series of lectures is sponsored by the Center, and international conferences of an exploratory, usually interdisciplinary, nature are held every year at Villa I Tatti. There is also an active publication program including the journal, I Tatti Studies: Essays in the Renaissance. The Center was founded on the principle that maturing scholars working independently will profit from close association with each other, with leading senior scholars, and with other experts of various interests, ages, nationalities, and levels of achievement. The interchange of ideas and information among scholars with different specialties characterizes both formal and informal communication at I Tatti. Mr. Berenson's dream of a cultural center where the heritage of the past would be preserved and fruitfully studied has been realized at I Tatti to an extent even he could not have anticipated. The long list of highly distinguished publications that have emanated from the Harvard University Center for Italian Renaissance Studies in the more than three decades of its existence, the roster of world-renowned scholars who have been Fellows, and the often moving testimonials of all who have been involved with this institution combine to attest the important position I Tatti occupies in Italian Renaissance studies today. Besides the villa, his library, and an archive of photographs and other visual images, Mr. Berenson left Harvard his collection of some 120 works of Renaissance and oriental art, which he intended should remain distributed throughout the house. His bequest also included his archive of correspondence and papers, as well as the farmlands and gardens surrounding the Villa. He saw both the collection and the setting as providing encouragement to thoughtful and creative intellectual meditation. An online catalogue of the Berenson Art Collection and a database of the visual documentation of its works of art are being created in memory of Melvin R Seiden.
Visitorsʼ Policy Since it is an active research center and not a museum, Villa I Tatti is not open to the general public. It is, however, possible for scholars, students, Harvard alumni, and other persons with ties to Harvard or with a special interest in the Renaissance to arrange a visit upon request. I Tatti can accommodate no more than eight visitors at a time. It is not possible to accommodate large groups or tours organized by commercial tour operators. In order not to interrupt the scholars working there, tours do not normally include the library; visitors are, however, allowed to take a tour of the Villa and its collections and to visit the gardens. Tours are conducted on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons at 3 o'clock and last approximately one hour. Visits are not possible during August, over the Christmas/New Year break, or on days when I Tatti is closed. Those wishing to visit the Villa and gardens at I Tatti should write well in advance, identifying themselves and indicating the date on which they wish to visit. Names and addresses of all prospective visitors in the party should be included as well as a return address and telephone number. We ask that children under the age of 12 not be included in your party. If possible, an address where the visitors will be staying in Florence should also be included. Confirmation by telephone after arrival in Florence is recommended.
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In
1900, the eminent historian and critic of
late medieval and Renaissance art, Bernard Berenson, took up residence
at Villa I Tatti. He continued to live there until his death in 1959. In
his will, he bequeathed the estate, located on the outskirts of Florence,
and his vast collection of books, photographs, and works of art to
Harvard University, from which he had received an A.B. in 1887.