Piazza Croce dei Vespri Palazzo Valguarnera Gangi Palermo

Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi is an urban palace, first of the Princes Valguarnera and then of the Princes Gangi, situated in the Piazza Croce dei Vespri, in the ancient quarter of the Kalsa in the city of

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, region of

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, Italy. The palace still retains its original rich

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

interior decoration, and is located a block south of the church of

Sant'Anna la Misericordia The Church of Saint Anne the Mercy (Italian language, Italian: Chiesa di Sant'Anna la Misericordia or simply Sant'Anna) is a Baroque architecture, Baroque church of Palermo. It is located in the area of the ancient market of Lattarini, in the Quar ...

History

The house was constructed in several phases during the 18th century and completed in circa 1780. The palace is designed in the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

style, although its ornamentation is of a more severe form in respect of what is generally accepted as Sicilian Baroque. The tall windows of the

piano nobile The ''piano nobile'' (Italian for "noble floor" or "noble level", also sometimes referred to by the corresponding French term, ''bel étage'') is the principal floor of a palazzo. This floor contains the main reception and bedrooms of the hou ...

are decorated with alternating pointed and segmented

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

s, while the windows of the lower and upper floors are much smaller, almost cell like, indicating a more modest function of the rooms they belong. In this way the architecture could be said to be more

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

than Baroque. In 1750 the interior was created in a Rococo style by Marianna Valguarnera, with special furniture in the very ornate style, created by local

craftsmen Craftsman may refer to: A profession *Artisan, a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative * Master craftsman, an artisan who has achieved such a standard that he may establish his own workshop and take ...

. The creation of the house took so long that the Baroque style passed out of fashion in favour of the neoclassical style, and it was during this era that the large circular and domed dining room was created with its painted

panel Panel may refer to: Arts and media Visual arts * Panel (comics), a single image in a comic book, comic strip or cartoon; also, a comic strip containing one such image *Panel painting, in art, either one element of a multi-element piece of art ...

s on the dome by Giuseppe Velasco. In 1963 the palazzo, and most memorably its ballroom, were the setting for Luchino Visconti's film' ''Il Gattopardo'' (''The Leopard''). Today, while the famous ballroom may be hired for events, and some rooms toured by reservation; the rest of the house is still used as a private residence.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Valguarnera-Gangi Baroque architecture in Palermo Palaces in Palermo

Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi is an urban palace, first of the Princes Valguarnera and then of the Princes Gangi, situated in the Piazza Croce dei Vespri, in the ancient quarter of the Kalsa in the city of Palermo, region of Sicily, Italy. The palace ...