Villa San Michele, Belmond’s 600-year-old sleeping beauty, stirs

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The Florentine hotel has reopened. It looks fresher than ever

© Adrian Gaut

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High on the slope of Monte Ceceri in Fiesole, overlooking the curve of the Duomo far below, Villa San Michele half-hides in a holly oak wood. Built in the early 15th century by the noble Davanzati family, the Franciscan convent was, for almost 200 years, home only to friars – never more than 10, and sometimes as few as two. As the Renaissance flourished, the convent was extended. Donatello carved the Davanzati coat of arms in stone in a courtyard; Michelangelo designed a new façade. In 1506, so the story goes, Leonardo da Vinci staged the first test of his “flying machine” from atop Ceceri, just a few hundred metres from the friars’ gardens.

The view through to the Limonaia suite© Adrian Gaut

The hotel’s façade© Adrian Gaut

Belmond’s Florentine jewel, which has been operating as a hotel since the 1950s, boasts a rich history in Italian hospitality. After an 18-month-long closure, Villa San Michele reopened last month; and the team behind its restoration, working under the direction of interiors architect [Luigi Fragola](https://www.luigifragola.com/en/ ""), has expertly mined that heritage. Fragola enlisted masters and makers from across the city’s artisan community – stoneworkers, weavers and more, all of whom have kept centuries-old traditions alive. Drapes and bed skirts showcase ornate silk passementerie. Tables adorned with floral motifs were handmade by Bianco Bianchi, one of the last remaining masters of scagliola, a 17th-century inlay technique.