Italian Palaces / Baroque Sumptuousness

What good is wealth if you can’t flaunt it? Throughout history, people have celebrated their victories by flaunting the spoils. Fortunes have been turned into art collections and palaces. At times, luck has been consistent and the wealth has remained in the family. At other times, the social influence and cultural dominance of a reigning family turned out to be fleeting, and is today only a distant memory. Thankfully, some of these ancient palaces, full of some of the world’s finest artworks and antiques, still remain, but instead of existing only behind closed doors, they are today open to the public. Here, we share three of our favourite opulent palaces, once the private home of emperors, rulers, and popes. 

Palazzo Colonna, Rome

For centuries, the Colonna family was one of the most influential families in Italy. Part of the papal nobility, the Palazzo Colonna in the centre of Rome has been the family’s residence for more than twenty generations. Originally built over the ruins of an old Roman Serapeum (a temple dedicated to the Greco-Egyptian deity Serapis), its oldest parts date back to the 13th century.

The palazzo is actually more of a palatial block of buildings than one solitary mansion. To visit is to gradually move from one architectural experience to another. 

The outside garden, situated one floor above Via della Pilotta, is unexpectedly tranquil, despite being situated at the base of Quirinal Hill, one of the seven hills of Rome. From here, it is possible to venture even further up through the park, to see the rooftops of Rome from above. The palazzo has one more park; Filippo Colonna (1578–1639) created a unitary complex around a central garden, on the opposite side of the street from the viewpoint of Giardino Colonna.

The fact that the palazzo has developed during the course of hundreds of years is evident in its complex structure. It wasn’t until the 17th and 18th centuries that the current facades were completed.

It’s main claim to fame is the Sala Grande, 70 metres long and decorated in a sumptuous Baroque style, complete with frescoes, chandeliers, marble floors and golden framed mirrors. On its walls are several important masterpieces, including works by Tintoretto, Bruegels, Titian, and Caravaggio. 

Throughout history, art has been not only a way to express beauty but also to communicate influence and wealth. The Colonna Art Gallery – one of the largest private art collections in Rome – succeeds in doing both.

Most visitors will be drawn to the opulence and grandeur of the Sala Grande and the adjoining Sala della Colonna Bellica, both completed in 1703 as a way to demonstrate the importance and cultural significance of the Colonna family (as important historical events where family members played key parts are depicted in the ceiling frescoes). 

Many are also intrigued to see the cannonball that is still remaining in one of the steps leading down into the gallery, once fired by the French troops that supported the Pope in the battle with the army of the Roman Republic, under the command of Garibaldi, in 1849. 

However, not to miss, as its subtle elegance is perhaps even more refined than the dominant (and loud) Sala Grande, is the Appartamento Principessa Isabella. Isabella Colonna, née Sursock, moved to Italy from Lebanon, and lived for many decades in this apartment, situated on the ground floor of the palazzo. Containing a succession of several beautiful rooms, with frescoed walls and vaulted ceilings, it provides an insight into how members of the nobility could live during the 20th century, in historic surroundings but not without the comforts of modern life. 

The apartment has been preserved as it was when the princess passed in 1984, and mainly follows the style of the two famous women who lived here, not only princess Isabel but also Maria Mancini (1639–1715, lover of Louis XIV of France), whose décor is still present in the first hall of the apartment, entirely painted with the flowers of renowned Italian artist Francesco Corallo.

Throughout history, Rome has been the home of many influential families and thus holds a number of palaces, but Palazzo Colonna, and its art collection, is one of its most spectacular. 

The Colonna family still resides here, on the top floor, so visitors are only welcome into the palazzo two days a week, Fridays and Saturdays.

Galleria Doria Pamphilj, Rome

One thing to notice when visiting the Galleria Doria Pamphilj is the particular order of the paintings, which hasn’t changed over the course of time. Virtually every painting is still in its original place, a strange and unusual form of resistance against the ephemerality of human existence. 

The art collection was started by Pope Innocent X Pamphilj already in 1644, and one of its greatest treasures is the painting that Velázquez painted of the pope, showing exactly how he looked, which at the time was highly unusual. 

The pope was known as a vindictive man who led a despotic lifestyle, evident in the controversial portrait. It also broke the tradition of enhancing and idealising the features of the one being portrayed. This makes it one of the most important works in the history of art, as it thus can be considered one of the very first realistic artworks. Since 1927, the painting has been displayed in a small room, placed together with a sculptured bust of the same pope, by Bernini. 

The principal entrance is on the Via del Corso, adjacent to the church Santa Maria in Via Lata. Both the palazzo and the church are still owned by the princely Roman family Doria Pamhilj. The palazzo, which has increased dramatically in size over the centuries, is likely the largest in Rome that is still in private ownership. 

The developments were not without controversy. The nephew of Pope Innocent X renounced the cardinalship that his uncle had bestowed on him, and instead married the widowed Olimpia Borghese, which was considered an extremely controversial action. It was through her that the palazzo first came into the family Pamphilj’s ownership.

After marriage the couple took up permanent residence in the palace. Almost at the same time, they began demolishing neighbouring buildings to expand their home. Many who lived around them complained, but the couple continued with their plans. After they had passed on, new generations of the family kept expanding the building, adding new constructions. The most famous part of the building is the four gilded and painted galleries surrounding a courtyard. 

The main art collection is displayed in several state rooms, including the chapel which is also home to the mummified corpse of the family saint. The collection is one of the largest private art collections in Rome and includes works by artists such as Titian, Raphael, and Caravaggio. Visiting the palazzo gives a rare insight into how the oldest and wealthiest of the Roman families have lived throughout the centuries, at the centre of political and economic power of Rome. 

 Palazzo Pitti, Florence

Florence is divided by the river Arno. On “the other side” of the Arno, Oltrarno, the Palazzo Pitti imposes on the neighbourhood. Warm summer days, both tourists and locals flock to the Giardino di Boboli, the castle’s large park. Originally planned by the Medici Family, this Italian garden style would become a model for many European courts (the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris, planned by Marie de Medici, is a notable example). It is adorned with ancient and Renaissance statues, several grottos as well as large fountains, the most famous being the Fountain of Neptune and the Fountain of the Ocean. 

After the Medici reign was over, the park was further developed by the Habsburg-Lorraine and the Savoy dynasties. The park’s boundaries were expanded, creating the enormous space that it is today, as it stretches all the way to Porta Romana.  The Lemon House, built by Zanobi del Rosso between 1777 and 1778, is not to be missed. 

The garden’s focal point is the Amphitheatre, built already in 1550 for Eleonora di Toledo, as a way of transforming the quarry used to supply the material for the construction of Palazzo Pitti. 

 The name “Pitti” originates from its first owner, the Florentine banker Luca Pitti, who commissioned the building in 1458, at the foot of the Boboli hill.  According to myth, Pitti gave instructions that the windows of his new palace should be larger than the entrance of the Palazzo Medici. 

As it is centuries old, the palace has lived through many incarnations, and today it is mainly considered a Renaissance building. Though it is only a short walk from Ponte Vecchio, it exists in a world of its own, completely dominating the area it sits in. This is an effect of the great power associated with it, as it was the chief residence of the ruling families of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, an Italian monarchy that between 1569 and 1859 replaced the Republic of Florence. During this time, Florence was the kingdom’s capital, initially ruled by the Medici Family.

For a brief period in the late 18th century, Napoleon used the palazzo as his power base – his extravagant bathroom still intact and one of the main sights today – and later it served as the principal royal palace for the newly unified Italy. 

 Since 1919, it has belonged to the Italian people, donated by King Vittorio Emmanuele III.

With over 32,000 square metres, Palazzo Pitti is the largest museum in Florence.