Casino di Villa Boncompagni Ludovisi is a historical building in Rione Ludovisi,

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 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 building is located in the former domain

Villa Ludovisi The Villa Ludovisi was a suburban villa in Rome, built in the 17th century on the area once occupied by the Gardens of Sallust (''Horti Sallustiani'') near the Porta Salaria. On an assemblage of vineyards purchased from Giovanni Antonio Orsini, C ...

. The building is often referred to as ''Villa Aurora'' or ''Casino dell'Aurora'', after the fresco by

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 ...

in the main reception hall, depicting the eponymous goddess.

History

The palace represents the only remnant of a much larger suburban retreat established in the 16th century by Cardinal

Francesco Maria Del Monte Francesco Maria del Monte, full name Francesco Maria Bourbon del Monte Santa Maria, (5 July 1549 – 27 August 1627) was an Italian Cardinal, diplomat, and connoisseur of the arts. His fame today rests on his early patronage of the important Bar ...

(1549–1627). The Cardinal was a diplomat, intellectual, art connoisseur, and collector, protector and patron of famous figures such as

Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...

and

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 ...

. One of the smaller rooms of the Casino boasts the only painting ever executed by Caravaggio on a ceiling, '' Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto'' (), which reflects, in symbolic imagery derived from Classical mythology, another of the cardinal's interests:

alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...

. In 1621, del Monte sold the villa and its extensive grounds to

Ludovico Ludovisi Ludovico Ludovisi (22 or 27 October 1595 – 18 November 1632) was an Italian Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal and statesman of the Roman Catholic Church. He was an art connoisseur who formed a famous collection of antiquities, housed at the ...

, whose uncle Alessandro Ludovisi had assumed the papacy earlier that year as

Pope Gregory XV Pope Gregory XV ( la, Gregorius XV; it, Gregorio XV; 9 January 15548 July 1623), born Alessandro Ludovisi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 February 1621 to his death in July 1623. Biography Early life Al ...

and made his nephew a cardinal the day after his coronation, at the age of 25. The cardinal expanded the property until he had created a 30 hectare park between the

Porta Pinciana Porta Pinciana is a gate of the Aurelian Walls in Rome. The name derives from the ''gens'' Pincia, who owned the eponymous hill (Pincian Hill). In ancient times it was also called ''Porta Turata'' ("Plugged Gate", for it was partially closed) ...

, the

Porta Salaria Porta Salaria was a gate in the Aurelian Walls of Rome, Italy. Constructed between 271 AD and 275 AD, it was finally demolished in 1921. History Porta Salaria was part of the Aurelian Walls built by emperor Aurelian in the 3rd century, inclu ...

and the convent of Sant'Isidoro, whose buildings were designed by

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 ...

, with gardens (purportedly designed by

André Le Nôtre André Le Nôtre (; 12 March 1613 – 15 September 1700), originally rendered as André Le Nostre, was a French landscape architect and the principal gardener of King Louis XIV of France. He was the landscape architect who designed the gar ...

), of which Henry James wrote in ''Portrait of Places'' (1883): "Certainly there is nothing better in Rome, and perhaps nothing so beautiful ... Inside there is everything: dark avenues shaped for centuries with scissors, valleys, clearings, groves ..." The princes

Boncompagni The Boncompagni is a princely family of the Italian nobility who settled in Bologna around the 14th century, but which was probably originally from Umbria. In 1572 they obtained the papal throne thanks to Ugo Boncompagni, who, with the name of P ...

-Ludovisi, heirs to the celebrated property and its vast collections, subdivided and sold the property in 1883. Rome's Ludovisi district was built on the land where the park had been and bears the coat of arms of the family. Of the historic buildings of the villa, only the Casino and the facade and staircase of the former Palazzo Grande remain, the latter now hidden behind what became the 19th-century

Palazzo Margherita Palazzo Margherita, formerly Palazzo Piombino, is a palazzo on Via Veneto in Rome. The usual name references Queen Margherita of Savoy, who lived there from 1900 to 1926. In 1885, the Boncompagni- Ludovisi family chose to sell their ancestral ...

after it was acquired by the Italian State as a residence for the Queen consort of Italy,

Margherita of Savoy Margherita of Savoy (''Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna''; 20 November 1851 – 4 January 1926) was Queen of Italy by marriage to Umberto I. Life Early life Margherita was born to Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabeth ...

. It now houses the

U.S. embassy The United States has the second most Diplomatic mission, diplomatic missions of any country in the world List of diplomatic missions of China, after Mainland China, including 166 of the 193 member countries of the United Nations, as well as obse ...

. Meanwhile, the 2,200 square meter Villa Aurora and a small parcel of land remained in the possession of the Ludovisi family. Apart from the works by

and

, it contains important works of art by Pomarancio,

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...

, and a collection of Roman and Greek artefacts. Encircled by high walls, it was occasionally opened to the public once a month or upon written request. A free virtual tour led by Princess Rita Boncompagni Ludovisi was made available in January 2022.

Current status

The property was put up for sale in 2021 after an inheritance dispute following the death of its last owner, Prince Nicolò Boncompagni Ludovisi, in 2018. The property was put up for auction by a notary on January 18, 2022, for a minimum bid of 471 million euros. There were no offers. The villa requires an estimated 10 million euros of restoration work. It was reoffered at a 20 percent discount (minimum offer) on April 7, 2022, but with no offers.

References

External links

Rome Artlover: Casino di Villa Lodovisi presso Porta Pinciana

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casino Di Villa Boncompagni Ludovisi Boncompagni Ludovisi Aurora (mythology)