The Palatine Gallery and Royal Apartments occupy the entire noble floor of Palazzo Pitti, which was the first residence of the Medici family, then of the Lorena and lastly of the Savoy family, housing the Kings of Italy from 1860 to 1919. The sumptuous Painting Gallery was created between the late 18th century and the first decades of the 19th century by the Lorena, with the intent to adorn the reception halls with about 500 works chosen amongst the masterpieces of the Medici’s collections. It is an extraordinary collection which includes the highest concentration of paintings by Raphael, as well as paintings by Titian, Tintoretto, Caravaggio and Rubens. The halls of the Gallery are also embellished by sculptures, vases and tables in semi-precious stones, in the style of 17th century painting gallery. The marvellous series of frescoes realised by Pietro da Cortona for Ferdinando II de’ Medici between 1640 and 1647 in the “Sale dei Pianeti” (Planets Hall), which exalt the exclusive charm of the visit to the Gallery, deserve to be mentioned.