Home to the Scuola Normale Superiore since 1846, it is one of the city’s most famous historic buildings.
Formerly the Palazzo degli Anziani in medieval times, it was renovated by Giorgio Vasari at the request of Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (1562). The building served as the seat of the college that educated the Knights of the Order of St. Stephen, a military and monastic institution founded in 1561 by the Grand Duke to carry on the maritime legacy of the ancient Republic of Pisa and combat Turkish raids in the Mediterranean.
The interior has a sober and austere appearance, featuring elegant reception halls: the Blue Hall, home to the Archives; the Hall of Coats of Arms; and the Grand Prior’s Hall.
The exterior features a harmonious, finely decorated façade: the windows framed by stone moldings, the panels bearing graffito decorations, the interplay of light and shadow, and the sculptural relief of architectural and sculptural elements lend it a regular and symmetrical appearance. The decoration has been enriched by portraits of the grand dukes—Cosimo I, Francesco I, Ferdinando I, Cosimo II, Ferdinando II, and Cosimo III—who look out from niches beneath the windows on the top floor.
The external staircase was designed in a neoclassical style and dates back to the 19th century.
The Palazzo della Carovana houses the administration offices, faculty and researchers’ offices, most of the classrooms, the Historical Archives, the Dreams Lab, and part of the library.
