The Palazzo Spinola di Pellicceria, also known as Palazzo Francesco Grimaldi, is a palace located in piazza di Pellicceria in the historical center of

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, Northwestern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The palace was one of the 163

Palazzi dei Rolli Genoa: Le Strade Nuove and the system of the Palazzi dei Rolli is a UNESCO World Heritage Site which includes a number of streets and palaces in the center of Genoa, in Northwestern Italy. * The ''Strade Nuove'' (Italian language, Italian for "Ne ...

of Genoa, the selected private residences where the notable guests of the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the Lat ...

were hosted during State visits. On 13 luglio del 2006 it was added to the list of 42 palaces which now form the UNESCO World Heritage Site Genoa: Le Strade Nuove and the system of the Palazzi dei Rolli. It is currently owned by the

Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism The Ministry of Culture ( it, Ministero della Cultura - MiC) is the ministry of the Government of Italy in charge of national museums and the ''monuments historiques''. MiC's headquarters are located in the historic Collegio Romano Palace (via ...

and houses the National Gallery of Art in Palazzo Spinola ().

History

The funds for the initial construction of this palace was present in the will of Francesco Grimaldi, made prior to 1593, when construction began upon medieval foundations at the site. The palace was included in the ''Rolli'' or list of aristocratic residences, that could be used by the government for hosting prominent visitors. An etching of its façade is included in

Peter Paul 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 ...

's 1622 book '' I Palazzi di Genova'', printed in Antwerp in 1622. The Grimaldi family commissioned the fresco decorations by Lorenzo De Ferrari and

Lazzaro Tavarone Lazzaro Tavarone (1556–1641) was an Italian painter of the late-Renaissance and Mannerism, Mannerist period, active mainly in his native Genoa and in Spain. He was the pupil of the painter Luca Cambiasi. Tavarone accompanied Cambiaso to Spain i ...

. The ceiling frescoes by Tavarone depict: the '' Siege of Lisbon by Duke of Alba'' (first floor) and the ''Triumph of Ranieri Grimaldi in 1304 over the Flemish fleet at

Zierikzee Zierikzee () is a small city in the southwest Netherlands, 50 km southwest of Rotterdam. It is situated in the municipality of Schouwen-Duiveland, Zeeland. The city hall of Schouwen-Duiveland is located in Zierikzee, its largest city. Zierikze ...

'' (second floor). The palace belonged to the

House of Grimaldi The House of Grimaldi ( , also , , ) is the current reigning house of the Principality of Monaco. The house was founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa and became the ruling house of Monaco when Francesco Grimaldi captured Monaco in 1297 ...

until 1641-1650, when it was transferred to Ansaldo Pallavicini, a brother in law of Tommaso Grimaldi, in order to settle a debt. Ansaldo was responsible for closing the open loggia of the first floor. The palace eventually passed through marriage from the Pallavicini to the Doria family, when Anna Maria Pallavicino married to Gerolamo Doria. In the 18th century it again passed through marriage to become the property of the

House of Spinola The House of Spinola, or Spinola family, was a leading Italian political family centered in the Republic of Genoa. Their influence was at its greatest extent in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Important members Guido Spinola was one o ...

, when Maddalena Doria married to Niccolò Spinola. Maddalena directed the

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, ...

refurbishment in the mid-18th century, and engaged Lorenzo De Ferrari,

Giovanni Battista Natali Giovanni Battista Natali, also known as Joan(nes) or Ioannes Baptista Natali (Pontremoli, 1698 – Piacenza, 1768), was an Italian painter and draughtsman of the late- Baroque period, active in his natal (?) city of Piacenza, pparent contradicti ...

and

Sebastiano Galeotti Sebastiano Galeotti (1656–1746) was a peripatetic Italian painter of the late- Baroque period, active in Florence, Genoa, Parma, Piacenza, Codogno, Lodi, Cremona, Milan, Vicenza, Bergamo, and Turin. Born in Florence, he was a pupil of the p ...

to paint the

quadratura Illusionistic ceiling painting, which includes the techniques of perspective ''di sotto in sù'' and ''quadratura'', is the tradition in Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo art in which ''trompe-l'œil'', perspective tools such as foreshortening, an ...

and decoration. She also commissioned the ''Gallery of Mirrors''. Her grandson, Paolo Francesco Spinola, however was forced during the Napoleonic occupation to sell many works of art; his portrait (1794) by

Angelica Kauffman Maria Anna Angelika Kauffmann ( ; 30 October 1741 – 5 November 1807), usually known in English as Angelica Kauffman, was a Swiss Neoclassical painter who had a successful career in London and Rome. Remembered primarily as a history painter, K ...

is on display in the palace. By 1830 the palace was owned by the Tollot Family who would give it to Tito and Ferdinando Pignone in 1875. The building has characteristics typical of late 16th-century Genoese palaces, having an entrance hall and an inner courtyard. The palace also had an extensive art collection, including paintings by Luca Cambiasi,

Bernardo Castello Bernardo Castello (or Castelli) (1557–1629) was an Italian painter of the late-Mannerist style, active mainly in Genoa and Liguria. He is mainly known as a portrait and historical painter.He needs to be distinguished from Giovanni Battista Ca ...

and

Bernardo Strozzi Bernardo Strozzi, named il Cappuccino and il Prete Genovese (c. 1581 – 2 August 1644) was an Italian Baroque painter and engraver. A canvas and fresco artist, his wide subject range included history, allegorical, genre and portrait paintin ...

. The third floor of the palace was destroyed during

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1958, the marquis Paolo and Franco Spinola donated the building, complete with its furnishings, artworks, silverware, ceramics, etchings and books, to the Italian government. The damaged part was subsequently rebuilt, and it has housed the since 1993.

Collection

Among the works of art in the collection are: *''Praying Virgin'' by

Joos van Cleve Joos van Cleve (; also Joos van der Beke; c. 1485–1490 – 1540/1541) was a leading painter active in Antwerp from his arrival there around 1511 until his death in 1540 or 1541. Within Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting, he combines the tr ...

*''Allegory of the Peace and the War'' by

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 ...

*''Portrait of a nun'' by

*''Ecce Homo'' by

Antonello da Messina Antonello da Messina, properly Antonello di Giovanni di Antonio, but also called Antonello degli Antoni and Anglicized as Anthony of Messina ( 1430February 1479), was an Italian painter from Messina, active during the Early Italian Renaissance. ...

*''Equestrian portrait of Giovanni Carlo Doria'' by Rubens *''Justice'' statue by

Giovanni Pisano Giovanni Pisano (c. 1250 – c. 1315) was an Italian sculptor, painter and architect, who worked in the cities of Pisa, Siena and Pistoia. He is best known for his sculpture which shows the influence of both the French Gothic and the Ancient Rom ...

*''Putti'' for Capella Grimaldi by

Giambologna Giambologna (1529 – 13 August 1608), also known as Jean de Boulogne (French), Jehan Boulongne (Flemish) and Giovanni da Bologna (Italian), was the last significant Italian Renaissance sculptor, with a large workshop producing large and small ...

and Pietro Francavilla

References

Bibliography

* Gioconda Pomella (2007), Guida Completa ai Palazzi dei Rolli Genova, Genova, De Ferrari Editore() * Mauro Quercioli (2008), I Palazzi dei Rolli di Genova, Roma, Libreria dello Stato () * Fiorella Caraceni Poleggi (2001), Palazzi Antichi e Moderni di Genova raccolti e disegnati da Pietro Paolo Rubens (1652), Genova, Tormena Editore () * Mario Labò (2003), I palazzi di Genova di P.P. Rubens, Genova, Nuova Editrice Genovese

Gallery

Genova-Palazzo Spinola-DSCF7484.JPG, Façade in Piazza di Pellicceria Palazzo Spinola di Pellicceria Genova 02.jpg, Portal in Piazza di Pellicceria PalazzoSpinolaDiPellicceria2.jpg, Façade in Piazza Inferiore di Pellicceria PalazzoSpinolaDiPellicceria.jpg, Portal in Piazza Inferiore di Pellicceria Lazzaro tavarone, Trionfo di Renato Grimaldi e Imprese per l'espugnazione della città di Zierikzee, 01.JPG, Interior Palazzo spinola, secondo piano, primo salotto 01.JPG, Sitting room Palazzo Spinola Genoa 01.JPG, Hall of Mirrors Palazzo spinola, antiche cucine 02.JPG, Kitchens

External links