The
Palazzo Colonna is a palatial block of buildings in central
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, at the base of the
Quirinal HillThe Quirinal Hill is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, at the north-east of the city center. It is the location of the official residence of the Italian Head of State, who resides in the Quirinal Palace; by metonymy "the Quirinal" has come to stand for the Italian President.- History :It was...
, and adjacent to the church of
Santi ApostoliThe Church of the Twelve Holy Apostles is a 6th century Roman Catholic parish and titular church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy, dedicated originally to St. James and St. Philip and later to all Apostles...
. It is built in part over ruins of an old Roman
SerapeumA serapeum is a temple or other religious institution dedicated to the syncretic Hellenistic-Egyptian god Serapis, who combined aspects of Osiris and Apis in a humanized form that was accepted by the Ptolemaic Greeks of Alexandria...
, and has belonged to the prestigious
Colonna familyThe Colonna family is an Italian noble family; it was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one Pope and many other Church and political leaders...
for over twenty generations.
History
The first part of the palace dates from the 13th century, and tradition holds that the building hosted
DanteDelivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe is a not-for-profit organisation that plans, builds and operates the international networks that interconnect the various national research and education networks in Europe and surrounding regions...
in his visit to Rome. The first documentary mention notes that the property hosted Cardinal Giovanni and Giacomo Colonna in the 13th century. It was also home to Cardinal Oddone Colona before he ascended to the papacy as Martin V (1415–1430).
With his passing, the palace was sacked during feuds, and the main property passed into the hands of the
Della RovereDella Rovere is a noble family of Italy. Coming from modest beginnings in Savona, Liguria, the family rose to prominence through nepotism and ambitious marriages arranged by two Della Rovere popes, Francesco della Rovere, who ruled as Pope Sixtus IV and his nephew Giuliano...
family. It returned to Colonna when Marcantonio I Colonna married Lucrezia Gara Franciotti
Della RovereDella Rovere is a noble family of Italy. Coming from modest beginnings in Savona, Liguria, the family rose to prominence through nepotism and ambitious marriages arranged by two Della Rovere popes, Francesco della Rovere, who ruled as Pope Sixtus IV and his nephew Giuliano...
, the niece of pope Julius II. The Colonna's alliance to the Habsburg power, likely protected the palace from looting during the
Sack of Rome (1527)The Sack of Rome on 6 May 1527 was a military event carried out by the mutinous troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in Rome, then part of the Papal States...
.
Starting with
Filippo ColonnaFilippo Colonna , Prince of Paliano, was an Italian nobleman, who was the head of the Colonna family of Rome and the hereditary Gran Connestabile at the court of Naples.-Biography:He was born at Rome...
(1578–1639) many changes have refurbished and create a unitary complex around a central garden. Architects including
Girolamo RainaldiGirolamo Rainaldi was an Italian architect who worked on the whole in a conservative Mannerist style, often with collaborating architects, yet was a successful competitor of Bernini...
and Paolo Marucelli labored on specific projects. Only in the 17th and 18th centuries were the main facades completed, one facing Piazza SS. Apostoli and the other Via della Pilotta. Much of this design was completed by Antonio del Grande (including the grand gallery), and Girolamo Fontana (decoration of gallery). In the 18th century, the long low facade designed by
Nicola MichettiNicola, Niccolo or Niccolò Michetti was an Italian Baroque architect....
with later additions by Paolo Posi with taller corner blocks (facing Piazza Apostoli) was constructed recalls earlier structures resembling a fortification.
Colonna Art Gallery
The main gallery (completed 1703) and the masterful Colonna art collection was acquired after 1650 by both the cardinal Girolamo I Colonna and his nephew the Connestabile
Lorenzo Onofrio ColonnaLorenzo Onofrio Colonna was an Italian nobleman of the Colonna family. He was the 8th Duke and Prince of Paliano and hereditary Grand Constable of the Kingdom of Naples. He was also a Knight of the Golden Fleece.-Biography:...
and includes works by
Lorenzo MonacoLorenzo Monaco was an Italian painter of the late Gothic-early Renaissance age.-Biography:...
,
Domenico GhirlandaioDomenico Ghirlandaio was an Italian Renaissance painter from Florence. Among his many apprentices was Michelangelo.-Early years:Ghirlandaio's full name is given as Domenico di Tommaso di Currado di Doffo Bigordi...
, Palma the Elder,
SalviatiFrancesco de' Rossi was an Italian Mannerist painter from Florence, also active in Rome. He is known by many names, prominently the adopted name Francesco Salviati or as Il Salviati, but also Francesco Rossi and Cecchino del Salviati.-Biography:Salviati was born and died in Florence...
, Bronzino,
TintorettoTintoretto , real name Jacopo Comin, was a Venetian painter and a notable exponent of the Renaissance school. For his phenomenal energy in painting he was termed Il Furioso...
,
Pietro da CortonaPietro da Cortona, by the name of Pietro Berrettini, born Pietro Berrettini da Cortona, was the leading Italian Baroque painter of his time and also one of the key architects in the emergence of Roman Baroque architecture. He was also an important decorator...
,
Annibale CarracciAnnibale Carracci was an Italian Baroque painter.-Early career:Annibale Carracci was born in Bologna, and in all likelihood first apprenticed within his family...
(painting of
The BeaneaterThe Beaneater is a painting by the Italian Baroque painter Annibale Carracci. Dating from 1580-1590 , it is housed in the Galleria Colonna of Rome....
), Guercino,
Francesco AlbaniFrancesco Albani or Albano was an Italian Baroque painter.-Early years in Bologna:Born 1578 in Bologna, his father was a silk merchant who intended to instruct his son in the same trade; but by age twelve, Albani became an apprentice under the competent mannerist painter Denis Calvaert, where he...
,
MuzianoGirolamo Muziano , was an Italian painter, active in a late-Renaissance or Mannerism style. He was born in Acquafredda, near Brescia, but active mainly in Rome....
and
Guido ReniGuido Reni was an Italian painter of high-Baroque style.-Biography:Born in Bologna into a family of musicians, Guido Reni was the son of Daniele Reni and Ginevra de’ Pozzi. As a child of nine, he was apprenticed under the Bolognese studio of Denis Calvaert. Soon after, he was joined in that...
. Ceiling frescoes by
Filippo GherardiFilippo Gherardi was an Italian painter of the Baroque period.Born in Lucca, he was mostly active in Venice and Rome, where he became a member of the large studio of Pietro da Cortona, often working closely with Giovanni Coli. With Coli, Gherardi was initially a trainee of Pietro Paolini in Lucca...
,
Giovanni ColiGiovanni Coli was an Italian painter from Lucca, active in the Baroque style.He trained with Pietro Paolini in Lucca and then moved to Rome to work under Pietro da Cortona. He often worked alongside Filippo Gherardi. With Coli, Gherardi was initially a trainee of Pietro Paolini in Lucca...
,
Sebastiano RicciSebastiano Ricci was an Italian painter of the late Baroque school of Venice. About the same age as Piazzetta, and an elder contemporary of Tiepolo, he represents a late version of the vigorous and luminous Cortonesque style of grand manner fresco painting.-Early years:He was born in Belluno, son...
, and
Giuseppe Bartolomeo ChiariGiuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari , also known simply as Giuseppe Chiari, was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque period, active mostly in Rome....
celebrate the role of Marcantonio II Colonna in the
battle of Lepanto (1571)The Battle of Lepanto took place on 7 October 1571 when a fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of Catholic maritime states, decisively defeated the main fleet of the Ottoman Empire in five hours of fighting on the northern edge of the Gulf of Patras, off western Greece...
. An
Apotheosis of Martin V was painted by
Benedetto LutiBenedetto Luti was an Italian painter.-Biography:Luti was born in Florence. He moved to Rome in 1691 where he was patronized by Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, an enthusiast for the pastel portrait. Luti was one of the first artists to work in pastels as the final composition as...
. There are frescoed apartments completed after 1664 by Crescenzio Onofri, Claude Lorraine and Pieter Mulier (nicknamed Cavalier Tempesta). Other rooms were frescoed in 18th century by
Pompeo BatoniPompeo Girolamo Batoni was an Italian painter whose style incorporated elements of the French Rococo, Bolognese classicism, and nascent Neoclassicism.-Biography:He was born in Lucca, the son of a goldsmith, Paolino Batoni...
and
Pietro BianchiPietro Bianchi was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active in Genoa and Rome.Pietro’s father, Giovanni Bianchi, had moved from Sarzana to Rome in 1682. His sister was married to an attendant to the household of the Marchese Marcello Sacchetti, who noted the boy Pietro’s affinity for...
.
The older wing of the complex known as the Princess Isabelle's apartments, but once housing Martin V's library and palace, contains frescoes by
PinturicchioBernardino di Betto, called Pintoricchio or Pinturicchio was an Italian painter of the Renaissance. He acquired his nickname, Pintoricchio , because of his small stature, and he used it to sign some of his works....
,
Antonio TempestaAntonio Tempesta was an Italian painter and engraver, a point of connection between Baroque Rome and the culture of Antwerp. He was born and trained in Florence and painted in a variety of styles, influenced to some degree by "Contra-Maniera" or Counter-Mannerism...
, Crescenzio Onofri,
Giacinto GimignaniGiacinto Gimignani was an Italian painter, active mainly in Rome, during the Baroque period.Gimignani was born in Pistoia, where his father, Alessio was also a painter and former pupil of Jacopo Ligozzi...
, and Carlo Cesi. It contains a collection of landscapes and genre scenes by painters like Lorraine,
Caspar Van WittelGaspar van Wittel was a Dutch Golden Age landscape painter.-Biography:Van Wittel was born in Amersfoort...
(Vanvitelli), and
Jan Brueghel the ElderJan Brueghel the Elder was a Flemish painter, son of Pieter Bruegel the Elder and father of Jan Brueghel the Younger. Nicknamed "Velvet" Brueghel, "Flower" Brueghel, and "Paradise" Brueghel, of which the latter two were derived from his floral still lifes which were his favored subjects, while the...
.
Along with the possessions of the
Doria-PamphilijThe Doria Pamphilj Gallery is a large art collection housed in the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj in Rome, Italy. It is situated between the Via del Corso and Via della Gatta. The principal entrance is on the Via del Corso...
and
Pallavacini-RospigliosiThe Palazzo Pallavicini-Rospigliosi is a palace in Rome, Italy. It was built by the Borghese family on the Quirinal Hill; its footprint occupies the site where the ruins of the baths of Constantine stood, whose remains still are part of the basement of the main building, the Casino dell'Aurora...
families, this is one of the largest private art collections in Rome.
Sources