House of Secrets

A look into the tantalising secrets of Florence's Palazzo Rucellai.
When Italian Renaissance professor Allison Levy takes up residency in the palazzo of her dreams - the Palazzo Rucellai in Florence - she finds herself consumed by the space and swept into the vortex of its history. She spends every waking moment in dusty Florentine libraries, exploring the palazzo's myriad rooms seeking to uncover its secrets.
As she unearths the stories of those who have lived behind its celebrated façade, she discovers that it has been witness to weddings, suicides, orgies, the dissection of a 'monster', and even a murder.
Entwining Levy's own experiences with the ghosts of the Palazzo Rucellai's past, House of Secrets paints a scintillating portrait of a family, a palace and one of the most iconic cities in the world.

Allison Levy is Digital Scholarship Editor at Brown University. An art historian, educated at Bryn Mawr College, Allison has taught in the US, Italy, and the UK. The author and editor of four books on early modern Italy and Europe, she is also General Editor of the book series Visual and Material Culture, 1300-1700, published by Amsterdam University Press.

Map of Florence
List of Illustrations
Timeline of principal events
Author's Note
Preface
Prologue
Piano Terra
Chapter One: The Merchant
Primo Piano
Chapter Two: The Opportunists
Secondo Piano
Chapter Three: The Heir Aberrant
Terzo Piano
Chapter Four: The Suicide Bride
Quarto Piano
Chapter Five: The Salonnière
Quinto Piano
Chapter Six: The Tenant
Sesto Piano
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Text Permissions
Notes
Bibliography
Index