Sammezzano, or the Castle of Sammezzano, is an Italian ''

palazzo A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

'' in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

featuring

Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centur ...

architectural style. It is located in Leccio, a hamlet of

Reggello Reggello is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence, between the north-western side of Pratomagno and the Upper Valdarno. The municipality borders ...

, in the

Province of Florence The province of Florence ( it, provincia di Firenze) was a province in the northeast of Tuscany region of Italy. The city or ''comune'' of Florence was both the capital of the Province of Florence, and of the Region of Tuscany. It had an area of ...

Description

The original ''palazzo'' was erected in about 1605 by the Spanish nobleman Ximenes of Aragon. In the 19th century, Ferdinand Panciatichi Ximenes inherited the property and, between 1853 and 1889, remodeled it into one of the largest examples of

Moorish Revival architecture Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mid-19th centur ...

Umberto I Umberto I ( it, Umberto Rainerio Carlo Emanuele Giovanni Maria Ferdinando Eugenio di Savoia; 14 March 1844 – 29 July 1900) was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination on 29 July 1900. Umberto's reign saw Italy attempt colo ...

, king of Italy, visited Ximenes at Sammezzano in 1878. The ''palazzo'' served as a luxury hotel in the post

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 ...

era; then was vacated and closed. A committee called FPXA 1813–2013, abbreviation for Ferdinand Panciatichi Ximenes d’Aragon, was organized in 2012 to attempt to restore and preserve the ''palazzo'', which has 365 rooms, each with unique, Moorish decoration. File:Sala dei pavoni 04.JPG, The Peacock Room File:Sammezzano, sala 19, 05.JPG, Ceiling detail File:Sammezzano, sala del nodum solve 18.JPG, Decorative detail

In music

Castle of Sammezzano can be seen in the 38 minutes long video - ''Beyond the Shores (on Death and Dying)'' - of the ban
Shores of Null

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control Castles in Tuscany Buildings and structures in Reggello 7 Most Endangered Programme Moorish Revival architecture in Italy Visionary environments