The Museo Bandini occupies a small palazzo on Via Dupré, a short walk from the cathedral. It holds the collection assembled by Angelo Maria Bandini, an 18th-century canon of the cathedral who spent decades acquiring medieval and Renaissance works. The core of the collection is Tuscan panel painting from the 13th to 15th centuries — Byzantine-influenced gold-ground panels, early Florentine altarpieces, and a handful of pieces by artists from the circle of Giotto.
Upstairs the collection includes glazed terracottas by the della Robbia workshop, Renaissance bronzes, and some decorative arts. The museum is rarely crowded, which makes it a good alternative to the archaeological site if you want to spend time with the works without an elbow in your ribs. The ticket is often combined with the Zona Archeologica. A modest but genuinely rewarding collection for anyone with an interest in early Tuscan art.