A Sarasota Gem - The Ringling Musuem and Mansion

If you are in Sarasota Florida renting a waterfront home or condo for the winter and if you've even been considering buying a waterfront home or condo here at some point, you owe it to yourself to become more familiar with one of the real treasures of Sarasota Florida, the Ringling Museum and Cà d’Zan Mansion.

John Ringling, one of the five original circus kings of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, became a very wealthy man. In 1911, John and his wife, Mable purchased 20 acres of Sarasota waterfront property and built an ornate Venetian Gothic-style mansion, Cà d’Zan.

Like many wealthy Americans, John and Mabel gradually acquired an enormous collection of art objects and antiquities as they traveled throughout Europe seeking new circus acts. To store and display all these treasures, John had a huge gallery palace built on the property next to the Cà d’Zan mansion.

At his death in 1936, John Ringling bequeathed the art collection and mansion to the State of Florida. For 10 years after John’s death, while the Ringling Museum was opened occasionally, it was not well maintained. The Cà d’Zan mansion remained a private home while the State of Florida fought with various creditors over the fate of the estate.

By the late 1990s, the Cà d’Zan mansion was falling apart. The roof of the Museum leaked, and the historic Asolo Theater built on the property in 1957 had been condemned. The future of the estate was dim at best

But then, in 2000, the State of Florida transferred the property to Florida State University (FSU) and in 2002, provided almost $43 million to begin restoration of the property. With another $55 million in privately donated funds, FSU began transforming the property from a dilapidated series of buildings to the outstanding museum site it is today.

The Ringling estate is now one of the largest museum complexes in the nation. The Florentine style of the Ringling Museum emulates the Uffizi Gallery housing the Ringlings’ collection of European paintings, architectural details and fine art objects, The museum, in addition to the outstanding fine art collection inside, features a courtyard filled with replicas of Greek and Roman sculpture, including a bronze cast of Michelangelo’s David.

While you are in Sarasota for the Winter, take a half day to casually tour the Ringling Museum and mansion. Along with the many other cultural attractions of our city, you'll understand why so many people choose to retire in Sarasota Florida.