What works are in the Uffizi Gallery? These are the ones you can’t miss
If you’re an art lover, we’re sure you already know what you’re looking for. If, on the contrary, you’re interested in discovering more about this world and seeing which works at the Uffizi Gallery are the most important, you’ve come to the right place. Here are the pieces you can’t miss at one of the most important art galleries in the world—it holds true treasures!
The most important works of the Uffizi Gallery
Before diving in, the Gallery has several exhibition rooms, arranged chronologically, showing works that range from the 13th to the 18th century. Nevertheless, the Italian Renaissance is the museum’s most representative period, though you’ll also find works from the Middle Ages, Gothic, Mannerism and Baroque. Now, without further ado, here are the highlights.
The Birth of Venus, Sandro Botticelli
Undoubtedly one of the most important works at the Uffizi Gallery—and in the world. Painted between 1484 and 1486, it depicts Venus emerging from the sea upon a shell, propelled by the winds of Zephyr and waiting to be cloaked by one of the Horae. The painting is a declaration of Renaissance ideals: proportion, harmony, and a renewed appreciation of classical mythology. It was revolutionary not only for presenting a mythological image but also for showing a nude outside a religious context.
Primavera, Sandro Botticelli
Another masterpiece by Botticelli, this painting overflows with symbolism. We see Venus as the central figure, surrounded by mythological characters such as the Three Graces and Zephyr, who also appears in The Birth of Venus. It is a celebration of nature, of love, and of rebirth.
The Annunciation, Leonardo da Vinci
Among the works at the Uffizi Gallery there is also this one by the genius, believed to be one of his earliest commissions. The Annunciation shows the Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary at the moment of the announcement. It stands out for being set outdoors—when typically it was indoors—for its meticulous details and for the use of perspective, an early proof of Da Vinci’s genius.
Madonna of the Goldfinch, Raphael
This painting, made by Raphael in his youth, shows the Virgin Mary with the Christ Child and John the Baptist. The harmony of the composition and the tenderness of the figures reveal why Raphael is considered one of the greats of the High Renaissance.
We can’t overlook a curious fact about this work. It was a wedding gift from Raphael to Lorenzo Nasi, and in 1548 an earthquake destroyed Nasi’s house and the painting was broken into seventeen pieces. As Giorgio Vasari (the architect of the Uffizi Gallery) relates, the remains were recovered and delivered to Battista, Lorenzo’s son, for restoration. The damage is still visible in the painting today!
Doni Tondo, Michelangelo
This is one of the Uffizi Gallery’s most important works, as it is Michelangelo’s only easel painting to have come down to us. It is a circular work depicting the Holy Family, with a background full of nudes that recall the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel. The dynamism of the figures and the use of color are striking; the frame of the work was also designed by Michelangelo himself.
Medusa, Caravaggio
Caravaggio, the master of chiaroscuro, brings his dramatic touch to the collection with this painting on a shield. The severed head of Medusa, with living eyes and mouth open in a scream, captures the exact moment of horror. Chiaroscuro shines in all its splendor and chills with a glance.
Diptych of the Duke of Urbino, by Piero della Francesca
The work stands out both for its technique and its conceptual depth. This diptych shows Federico da Montefeltro and Battista Sforza in profile portraits, as if they were figures on a Roman coin. The choice of profile is no accident: Federico had lost his right eye in battle, and so he was always portrayed from his left side.
Venus of Urbino, by Titian
Titian presents a nude woman, reclining naturally, who looks directly at the viewer. Her expression is neither modest nor passive: she is aware of her beauty and the power of her gaze. This Venus is not mythological like Botticelli’s; she is a real woman in her own home—a statement of femininity as an aesthetic ideal, beyond mythology.
The Adoration of the Magi, by Gentile da Fabriano
This altarpiece, laden with gold and meticulous detail, is one of the most dazzling examples of International Gothic. The Adoration of the Magi, painted in 1423, impresses both for its narrative complexity and its splendor. Gentile does not limit himself to showing the arrival of the Magi; he recounts the entire journey, integrating scenes into a single continuous space.
Judith Beheading Holofernes, by Artemisia Gentileschi
Few works in the Uffizi Gallery provoke such a visceral reaction. Artemisia Gentileschi, one of the few women painters recognized in her time, pours extraordinary force into this scene. Judith, together with her maid, restrains and decapitates the Assyrian general Holofernes with a determined, fierce expression. Unlike other depictions of the same subject, here the violence is not softened; on the contrary, it is shown with raw determination.
Bacchus, by Caravaggio
Finally, one can’t talk about the Uffizi’s great works without pausing at Bacchus, which presents the god of wine in a thoroughly earthly—and quite provocative—guise. The youth is crowned with vine leaves, his cheeks flushed—surely from wine—and he extends the goblet toward the viewer, as if inviting them to share in the pleasures with him.
We could talk for hours about the best works in this gallery, but we think it’s best that you discover them for yourself. You certainly won’t regret buying tickets for the Uffizi Gallery and enjoying these and many other masterpieces of their time.