Leopoldo de' Medici

Leopoldo de' Medici (6 November, 1617 – 16 November 1675) was an Italian Cardinal, scholar and patron of the arts. He was the brother of Ferdinando II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany.

Biography

Leopoldo de' Medici was born in Florence. He was educated under Jacopo Soldano, father Flaviano Michelini and Evangelista Torricelli. When his brother was elected Grandduke, Leopoldo acted as his advisor for manufactures, agriculture and trades.

He was indeed a great fan of science and techonology. In 1638 he founded the Accademia Platonica, and, together with Ferdinando, the Accademia del Cimento ("Academy of the Daring") in 1657 to promote observation of nature through the Galileian Method. In 1641 Leopoldo had been named member of the Accademia della Crusca, for which he edited the entries regardin art for the 3rd edition of the Crusca Dictionary (1691).

Leopoldo was also a great collectionist of rare books, paintings (the Venetian collection at the Uffizi is largely a heritage of him), drawings, statues, coins and self-portraits. He left a wide correspondence with artists and collectionists of the time

On december 12 1667 Pope Clement IX named him cardinal of San Cosma e Damiano. From that point on Leopoldo made frequent trips to Rome, pursuing his artistical interests. He died in 1675. His large collections were included to the several museums of Florence.