The Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi is a palace in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, Italy. It was built by the
Borghese
The House of Borghese is a princely family of Italian noble and papal background, originating as the Borghese or Borghesi in Siena, where they came to prominence in the 13th century and held offices under the ''commune''. During the 16th century, ...
family on the
Quirinal Hill
The Quirinal Hill (; la, Collis Quirinalis; it, Quirinale ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, at the north-east of the city center. It is the location of the official residence of the Italian head of state, who resides in the Quirinal Palace ...
; its footprint occupies the site where the ruins of the
baths of Constantine stood, whose remains still are part of the basement of the main building, the Casino dell'Aurora. Its first inhabitant was the famed art collector Cardinal
Scipione Borghese
Scipione Borghese (; 1 September 1577 – 2 October 1633) was an Italian Cardinal, art collector and patron of the arts. A member of the Borghese family, he was the patron of the painter Caravaggio and the artist Bernini. His legacy is the estab ...
, the nephew of
Pope Paul V
Pope Paul V ( la, Paulus V; it, Paolo V) (17 September 1550 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death in January 1621. In 1611, he honored ...
, who wanted to be housed near the large papal
Palazzo Quirinale
The Quirinal Palace ( it, Palazzo del Quirinale ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, one of the three current official residences of the president of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporzian ...
. The palace and garden of the Pallavicini-Rospigliosi were the product of the accumulated sites and were designed by
Giovanni Vasanzio
Giovanni Vasanzio or Jan van Santen (1550–21 August 1621) was a Dutch-born architect, garden designer and engraver who spent his mature career in Rome, where he arrived in the 1580s.
Vasanzio was born in Utrecht. He worked as assistant to ...
and
Carlo Maderno
Carlo Maderno (Maderna) (1556 – 30 January 1629) was an Italian architect, born in today's Ticino, who is remembered as one of the fathers of Baroque architecture. His façades of Santa Susanna, St. Peter's Basilica and Sant'Andrea della Valle ...
in 1611–16. Scipione owned this site for less than a decade, 1610–16, and commissioned the construction and decoration of the casino and ''pergolata'', facing the garden of Montecavallo. The Roman palace of this name should not be mistaken for the panoramic Villa Pallavicino on the shores of
Lake Como
Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...
in
Lombardy
Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...
.
The Casino dell'Aurora and L'Aurora fresco by Guido Reni
The palace's main attraction, beside the art gallery, is the Casino dell'Aurora. The casino was designed by Vasanzio is located overlooking the
Piazza del Quirinale
The Quirinal Palace ( it, Palazzo del Quirinale ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, one of the three current official residences of the president of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporzian ...
. On the walls are four frescoes of the ''Seasons'' by
Paul Bril
Paul Bril (1554 – 7 October 1626) was a Flemish painter and printmaker principally known for his landscapes.Nicola Courtright. "Paul Bril." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 26 September 2016 He spent most of h ...
, and two ''Triumphs'' by
Antonio Tempesta
Antonio Tempesta, also called il Tempestino (1555 – 5 August 1630), was an Italian painter and engraver, whose art acted as a point of connection between Baroque Rome and the culture of Antwerp. Much of his work depicts major battles and hi ...
. Its ceiling displays what is considered the Bolognese painter
Guido Reni
Guido Reni (; 4 November 1575 – 18 August 1642) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, although his works showed a classical manner, similar to Simon Vouet, Nicolas Poussin, and Philippe de Champaigne. He painted primarily religious ...
's fresco masterpiece (1614), commonly called ''
L'Aurora''.
Casino Aurora Pallavicini
official site. It is surrounded by a painted frame or ''quadro riportato
''Quadro riportato'' (plural ''quadri riportati'') is the Italian phrase for "carried picture" or "transported paintings". It is used in art to describe gold-framed easel paintings or framed paintings that are seen in a normal perspective (visual), ...
'' and depicts ''Apollo in his Chariot preceded by Dawn (Aurora)'' bringing light to the world. The incorporated heraldic symbols were meant to link Scipione with Apollo. The work is classically restrained and mimics poses from ancient Roman sarcophagi
A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a cadaver, corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from ...
, many of which are part of the museum's collection. The chariot procession, which recalls the Annibale Carracci
Annibale Carracci (; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother and cousin, Annibale was one of the progenitors, if not founders of a leading strand of th ...
paintings in the Farnese Gallery in the Farnese Palace
Palazzo Farnese () or Farnese Palace is one of the most important High Renaissance palaces in Rome. Owned by the Italian Republic, it was given to the French government in 1936 for a period of 99 years, and currently serves as the French emb ...
, shows even more restraint. There is little concession to perspective, and if anything the vibrantly colored style is an affront to the tenebrism of Caravaggio's followers, despite this being a pavilion commissioned by one of Caravaggio
Michelangelo Merisi (Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, known as simply Caravaggio (, , ; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the final four years of hi ...
's early patrons, Scipione Borghese. The ''pergolata'' is decorated by Paul Bril.
The architect Vasanzio succeeded in achieving a perfect balance between the architectural structure and the lavish decoration of the façade. It is characterised by slabs from Roman sarcophagi of the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, which recount ancient mythological tales linked to the subject of love-death and the immortality of the soul. The central part of the façade is enhanced by big windows, which create charming transparency between outdoors and indoors and open onto the big central hall with its ceiling decorated with the ''Aurora'' fresco.
The same room holds other beautiful frescoes: the ''Triumph of Fame'' and the ''Triumph of Love'' by Antonio Tempesta, the Cardinal's coat of arms and Cherubino Alberti's putti, the ''Four Seasons'' by Paul Bril
Paul Bril (1554 – 7 October 1626) was a Flemish painter and printmaker principally known for his landscapes.Nicola Courtright. "Paul Bril." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 26 September 2016 He spent most of h ...
, 17th-century marble busts and sculptures from the Roman era, including the famous ''Artemis the Huntress'' and the ''Rospigliosi Athena''. The ceilings of the two side halls are frescoed by Domenico Passignano
Domenico Passignano (1559 – 17 May 1638), born Domenico Cresti or Crespi, was an Italian painter of a late-Renaissance or Counter-''Maniera'' (Counter-Mannerism) style that emerged in Florence towards the end of the 16th century.
Biography
...
with the'' Battle between Rinaldo and Armida'' and Giovanni Baglione
Giovanni Baglione (1566 – 30 December 1643) was an Italian Late Mannerist and Early Baroque painter and art historian. He is best remembered for his acrimonious and damaging involvement with the slightly younger artist Caravaggio and ...
with the ''Tale of Armida'' and some paintings from the Pallavicini Collection are still kept there.
Later the site was sold to Giovanni Angelo Altemps for the sum of 115,000 scudi
The ''scudo'' (pl. ''scudi'') was the name for a number of coins used in various states in the Italian peninsula until the 19th century. The name, like that of the French écu and the Spanish and Portuguese escudo, was derived from the Latin ''scu ...
with the Reni ''Aurora'' fresco valued at 200 scudi. It was then sold to the Bentivoglio family, followed by the Lante family, and then to Cardinal G. Mazarini. It is during the ownership by these families and individuals that the main building of the palace took its final shape.
The palace served as the French embassy in Rome prior before it moved to its more spacious current accommodation at the Palazzo Farnese
Palazzo Farnese () or Farnese Palace is one of the most important High Renaissance List of palaces in Italy#Rome, palaces in Rome. Owned by the Italian Republic, it was given to the French government in 1936 for a period of 99 years, and cur ...
. In 1704, the palace became a property of the Rospigliosi-Pallavicini family, who still own it and who enriched its decoration and completed its present art gallery.
The casino is rented out for meetings.
Art gallery
The art gallery, the Galleria Pallavicini, was begun by Cardinal Lazzaro Pallavicini
Lazzaro Pallavicini or Pallavicino (1602/1603 – 21 April 1680) was a Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal of the Catholic Church starting on 19 May 1670.
He was one of 22 siblings born in Genoa, Italy. His ancestors and kin included cardinals and Ge ...
, and includes more than 540 paintings, designs and sculptures. Aside from the collections of the Doria-Pamphili and Colonna
The House of Colonna, also known as ''Sciarrillo'' or ''Sciarra'', is an Italian noble family, forming part of the papal nobility. It was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one pope (Martin V) and many other church and politica ...
families, this is the largest private collection in Rome. The rooms are frescoed by Paul Bril
Paul Bril (1554 – 7 October 1626) was a Flemish painter and printmaker principally known for his landscapes.Nicola Courtright. "Paul Bril." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 26 September 2016 He spent most of h ...
, and a loggia in a garden is decorated with frescoes by Orazio Gentileschi
Orazio Lomi Gentileschi (1563–1639) was an Italian painter. Born in Tuscany, he began his career in Rome, painting in a Mannerist style, much of his work consisting of painting the figures within the decorative schemes of other artists. After ...
and Agostino Tassi
Agostino Tassi (born Agostino Buonamici; 1578 – 1644) was an Italian landscape and seascape painter, who was convicted of raping Artemisia Gentileschi in 1612.
Because he aspired to nobility he modified the details of his early life. Though ...
. Among the paintings that remain in the collection, following some sales and losses in previous centuries, are works by artists such as:
:
*Botticelli
Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi ( – May 17, 1510), known as Sandro Botticelli (, ), was an Italian painter of the Early Renaissance. Botticelli's posthumous reputation suffered until the late 19th century, when he was rediscovered ...
* Johann van Bloemen with a ''veduta of the Colosseum''.
*Paul Bril
Paul Bril (1554 – 7 October 1626) was a Flemish painter and printmaker principally known for his landscapes.Nicola Courtright. "Paul Bril." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web. 26 September 2016 He spent most of h ...
with veduta of coast.
*Abraham Brueghel
Abraham Brueghel (baptised 28 November 1631 – c. 1690) was a Flemish painter from the famous Brueghel family of artists. He emigrated at a young age to Italy where he played an important role in the development of the style of decorative Baroq ...
III with a ''Still life with apples, pomegranate, grapes and a man''.
*Annibale Carracci
Annibale Carracci (; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother and cousin, Annibale was one of the progenitors, if not founders of a leading strand of th ...
*Giuseppe Chiari
Giuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari (10 March 1654 – 8 September 1727), also known simply as ''Giuseppe Chiari'', was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque period, active mostly in Rome.
Biography
Born in Rome, he was one of the main assistants, alon ...
with ''Flight from Egypt''.
*Sebastiano Conca
Sebastiano Conca (8 January 1680 – 1 September 1764) was an Italian painter.
Biography
He was born at Gaeta, then part of the Kingdom of Naples, and apprenticed in Naples under Francesco Solimena. In 1706, along with his brother Giovanni, who ...
with a ''Holy Family''.
*Pietro da Cortona
Pietro da Cortona (; 1 November 1596 or 159716 May 1669) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect. Along with his contemporaries and rivals Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, he was one of the key figures in the emergence of Roman ...
*Jacques Courtois
Jacques Courtois or Giacomo Cortese, called il Borgognone or le Bourguignon (12 ?December 162114 November 1676) was a Franche-Comtois–Italian painter, draughtsman, and etcher. He was mainly active in Rome and Florence and became known as the ...
with two battle paintings.
*Domenichino
Domenico Zampieri (, ; October 21, 1581 – April 6, 1641), known by the diminutive Domenichino (, ) after his shortness, was an Italian Baroque painter of the Bolognese School of painters.
Life
Domenichino was born in Bologna, son of a shoem ...
, Anthony van Dyck
Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy.
The seventh c ...
with a ''Santa Rosalia''.
*Ludovico Gimignani
Ludovico Gimignani (1643 – 26 June 1697) was an Italian painter, who is mainly known for his altarpieces for churches in Rome.
Biography
Ludovico was born in Rome as the son of the painter Giacinto (1611–1681). His father was one of the mai ...
with an “Ester who faints in front of Assuero” and another completed with help by David de Coninck: ''Boy with greyhound'' .
*Luca Giordano
Luca Giordano (18 October 1634 – 3 January 1705) was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Fluent and decorative, he worked successfully in Naples and Rome, Florence, and Venice, before spending a decade in Spain.
Ear ...
with ''Helen's escape''.
*Guercino
Giovanni Francesco Barbieri (February 8, 1591 – December 22, 1666),Miller, 1964 better known as Guercino, or il Guercino , was an Italian Baroque painter and draftsman from Cento in the Emilia region, who was active in Rome and Bologna. The vig ...
has eight paintings including ''San Francis praying'', ''Fruit-seller and child'' and ''Flora''.
*Lorenzo Lotto
Lorenzo Lotto (c. 1480 – 1556/57) was an Italian Painting, painter, draughtsman, and illustrator, traditionally placed in the Venetian school (art), Venetian school, though much of his career was spent in other north Italian cities. He pain ...
: '' Madonna with Child and Saints Jerome and Nicholas of Tolentino''.
*Benedetto Luti
Benedetto Luti (17 November 1666 – 17 June 1724) was an Italian painter.
Early life
Luti was born in Florence on 17 November 1666.
Career
In 1691, he moved to Rome, where he was patronized by Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, an en ...
with a portrait of Cardinal Fabroni.
*Simone Pignoni
Simone Pignoni (April 17, 1611 – December 16, 1698) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period.
He apprenticed with Fabrizio Boschi, then with the more academic and puritanical Domenico Passignano, and finally with Francesco Furini. He is ...
has an attributed a ''Cefalo and Procris''.
*Poussin
Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was the leading painter of the classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and mythological subjects painted for a ...
*Mattia Preti
Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Saint John.
Life
Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was called ''Il Cava ...
with a ''Christ before Pontius Pilate''.
* Reni
*Rubens
Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...
: Thirteen portraits of ''Jesus Christ'' and ''The Twelve Apostles''
*Sacchi Sacchi is an Italian surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Ada Sacchi Simonetta (1874–1944), Italian librarian and women's rights activist
*Andrea Sacchi (1599–1661), Italian Baroque painter
* Antonio Sacchi (died 1694), Italian B ...
with the ''Drunkedness of Noah''.
*Luca Signorelli
Luca Signorelli ( – 16 October 1523) was an Italian Renaissance painter from Cortona in Tuscany, who was noted in particular for his ability as a draftsman and his use of foreshortening. His massive frescos of the ''Last Judgment'' (1499–15 ...
* Ferdinand Voet with a portrait of ''Vincenzo Rospigliosi''.
See also
* Palais Pallavicini
Palais Pallavicini is a palace in Vienna, Austria. It is located in the Josefsplatz square at number 5. It has been owned by the noble Pallavicini family. It was previously built and owned by the Fries banking family (Swiss-Austrian) and is ther ...
in Vienna
There is also a Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi in Pistoia
Pistoia (, is a city and ''comune'' in the Italian region of Tuscany, the capital of a province of the same name, located about west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno. It is a typi ...
.
References
External links
Official website
A Brief Guide to Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi
Satellite photo
The Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi, Casino dell'Aurora, and the gardens are located obliquely south of Piazza Quirinale and the massive Palazzo Quirinale
The Quirinal Palace ( it, Palazzo del Quirinale ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, one of the three current official residences of the president of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporzian ...
. It is adjacent to a nearly triangular building. The casino overlooks the street.
{{coord, 41.8984, 12.4877, type:landmark_source:enwiki-googlemaplink, display=title
Houses completed in 1616
Pallavicini-Rospigliosi
Borghese residences
Renaissance architecture in Rome
Private collections in Italy
Rome R. I Monti
1616 establishments in the Papal States
1616 establishments in Italy