Hunters' building

The Palazzina dei Cacciatori (The hunters' building) was commissioned by Cosimo I de'Medici at the same time as the works for the construction of the Medici Villa in 1564.

It was the usual meeting place, as the name itself indicates, for those who go hunting in Cerreto, a place where, as the Grand Duke himself wrote, 'we hunt all the year'.

The Palazzina dei Cacciatori passed in 1876 to the Capitolo di Prato to which the Saint Leonard parish church had already been annexed in 1563 as a gift from Cosimo I to his butler and adviser Francesco Riccio, from Prato.

The building still retains the ancient Medici coat of arms on the front and was used, until a few years ago, as the seat of the Capitolo Farm. If you are a tourist and you are curious to see it you will have to walk the streets of Cerreto Guidi until you'll be in Via Saccenti.

On the left you will admire the steep staircase, typically medieval, which led to the castle of the Guidi counts and to the first nucleus of the town of Cerreto.
It is one of the ways to reach the Saint Leonard parish church and the Museum of the Medici Villa.

The house next to it is believed, by ancient tradition not confirmed by documents, to have been the birthplace of Caterina, mother of Leonardo da Vinci.