The Domincan Convent was begun in the early 1400s. The first "prior" (head man) was St. Antoninus of Florence. The famous painter known as Fra Angelico was one of the first of the Dominican Friars to live and work there. He later became the prior. The land for the convent was given to the friars by Cosimo Medici. The monks lived in small rooms called "cells". Cosimo had a cell built for himself, where he could stay sometimes. Between 1447 and 1452 Cosimo got his favourite architect, Michelozzo, to build a large new library and improve other parts of the building. In the late 1700s, the facade (front) of the building was rebuilt in a Classical style.