Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere is a 16th-century villa in

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

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, built in 1560 for the nobleman Tobia Pallavicino. It is situated in via San Bartolomeo degli Armeni 25, in the quarter of Castelletto, in an area that, at the time when the villa was built, was still outside of the city walls. After the urban expansion of the 19th century, it is now located in the center of the city. The villa still belongs to the Pallavicino family.

History

The villa was built in 1560 as a summer house for the Genoese nobleman Tobia Pallavicino, a wealthy merchant in

alum An alum () is a type of chemical compound, usually a hydrated double salt, double sulfate salt (chemistry), salt of aluminium with the general chemical formula, formula , where is a valence (chemistry), monovalent cation such as potassium or a ...

, in an elevated area over the city which, in the 16th century, was still outside of the city walls. While the villa was being constructed, Tobia Pallavicino also commissioned his

city palace City Palace may refer to: * City Palace, Berlin, Germany * City Palace, Brunswick, Germany * City Palace, Potsdam, Germany * Wiesbaden City Palace, Germany * Schloss Weimar, Germany * City Palace, Jaipur, India * City Palace, Udaipur, India * Myso ...

in the Strada Nuova (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

for "New Street", now via Garibaldi), known today as Palazzo Carrega-Cataldi.

Raffaele Soprani Raffaele Soprani (1612-1672) was an Italian aristocrat known mainly as an art historian for his volume of biographies of Genoese artists, published posthumously in 1674. Biography He was born to a senatorial family in Genoa, and himself served twi ...

attributed the design of the villa to

Galeazzo Alessi Galeazzo Alessi (1512 – 30 December 1572) was an Italian architect from Perugia, known throughout Europe for his distinctive style based on his enthusiasm for ancient architecture. He studied drawing for civil and military architecture under the ...

in 1674, although he still doubted whether “''some reforms and additions''" should not be attributed to Giovanni Battista Castello "il Bergamasco" instead, who was building a city palace for Tobia Pallavicino in the same period. The villa underwent some alterations and a general restoration before 1846. In the second half of the 19th century, the large park was reduced in size to make way to the opening of via Peschiera.

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

is one of the notable guests who stayed at the villa and described in his ''Pictures from Italy'' the views over the city and the Acquasola gardens which one could enjoy from the park.

Description

Architecture

Galeazzo Alessi used in Villa delle Peschiere some new approaches to connect the garden and the interior of the villa. In particular, he built two main entrances, one on each side, thus realizing an organic continuity between the garden, the central rooms and the staircase. The southern facade is sumptuously decorated, with geometrical compositions and a decorative scheme of Ionic and

Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to: *Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: **First Epistle to the Corinthians **Second Epistle to the Corinthians **Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox) *A demonym relating to ...

lesene A lesene, also called a pilaster strip, is an architectural term for a narrow, low-relief vertical pillar on a wall. It resembles a pilaster, but does not have a base or capital. It is typical in Lombardic and Rijnlandish architectural building s ...

Decoration

The internal

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

es and the hexagonal bathroom (a bizarre fashion of the time, documented in several Genoese villas, but preserved only in Villa delle Peschiere) were realized by

Marcello Sparzo Marcello Sparzo (—1616) was an Italian sculptor of the 17th century, renowned particularly as a master plasterer. Considered by his contemporaries as one of the foremost plastic arts, plastic artists and sculptors of the period, he was among th ...

, a member of the school of

Giovanni Battista Castello Giovanni Battista Castello (1500 or 1509–1569 or 1579) was an Italian historical Painting, painter. Born in Gandino near Bergamo, he is ordinarily termed Il Bergamasco to distinguish him from the other painter (of miniatures) with the identi ...

. The rich frescoes at 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 ...

, almost completely preserved, are attributed to Antonio Semino with some interventions by

Luca Cambiaso Luca Cambiaso (also known as Luca Cambiasi and Luca Cangiagio (being ''Cangiaxo'' the surname in Ligurian); 18 November 1527 – 6 September 1585) was an Italian painter and draughtsman and the leading artist in Genoa in the 16th century. He i ...

, to whom is also attributed the mythological cycle of frescoes in the lateral rooms.

Landscaping

The garden, whose original condition is known today thanks to the drawings of

Martin-Pierre Gauthier Martin-Pierre Gauthier (1790–1855) was a French architect. 1790 births 1855 deaths People from Troyes 19th-century French architects Recipients of the Legion of Honour Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Prix de Rome for architec ...

, has been greatly reduced in size in the 19th century when Via Peschiera was built. Part of the garden is still preserved in the area around the villa, which includes the fountain with a statue attributed to

Gian Giacomo Vansoldo Gian is a masculine Italian given name. It is a variant of Gianni and is likewise used as a diminutive of Giovanni, the Italian form of John. In Italian, any name including Giovanni can be contracted to Gian, particularly in combination with oth ...

References

Bibliography

* ''Catalogo delle Ville Genovesi'', Italia Nostra, Genova 1967, p. 100-117. * Federico Alizeri, ''Guida Artistica della Citta di Genova'', Genova 1846, p. 486. * Raffaele Soprani, Le Vite de pittori scoltori et architetti genovesi, Genova, 1674 * Riccardo Luccardini, ''La Circonvallazione a Monte. Genova. Storia dell'espansione urbana dell'Ottocento'', Genova, SAGEP, 2012, p. 52. * Martin-Pierre Gauthier, ''Les plus beaux edifices de la ville de Genes'', Paris, 1832, II, tav. 1-6. * Charles Dickens, ''Pictures from Italy'', Paris 1846, p. 37. * ''Guida d'Italia Liguria'', Touring Club Italiano, 2009,p. 181.

Gallery

File:Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere 02.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, north facade File:Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere 05.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, north facade File:Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere 06.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, fountain File:Villa di Tobia Pallavicino detta delle Peschiere, Genova 06.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, fountain File:Villa di Tobia Pallavicino detta delle Peschiere, Genova 08.jpg, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, interior File:Villa di Tobia Pallavicino detta delle Peschiere, Genova 09.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, interior File:Villa di Tobia Pallavicino detta delle Peschiere, Genova 05.JPG, Villa Pallavicino delle Peschiere, interior File:Pierre Paul Rubens - Palazzi di Genova, vol. I - Figura 31.jpg, File:Villa delle Peschiere Genova 1.jpg, Villa delle Peschiere, portal File:Villa delle Peschiere Genova gate.jpg, Villa delle Peschiere, portal File:Villa delle Peschiere Genova gate portal.jpg, Villa delle Peschiere, portal

Other projects

{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Genoa Villas in Liguria Residential buildings completed in the 17th century