Villa Torrigiani
The Villa Torrigiani is located in the hamlet of Camigliano, a town in Capannori (Lucca). It is one of the most luxurious and beautiful villas around Lucca, and dates from the second half of the sixteenth century.
History
The first mention of the villa dates back to 1593, as belonging to the Buonvisi family. It was bought later by Nicola Santini, who rebuilt the south facade in the Baroque style at the end of the seventeenth century, probably in imitation of the architecture of Versailles where he was ambassador to the Republic of Lucca. The rebuilding involved the addition of two wings to the villa, and the modification of the front by the addition of a massive scale range leading to a serliana, duplicated on the upper floor with two balconies, decorated with statues.
Architecture
The villa stands out from other villas in Lucca and in Tuscany by the multicoloured facade of the main building obtained using different materials: stone grey and tuff alternating yellow pillars and arches, marble statues of white, ochre plaster at the bottom with the upper part in white. Even the use of parapets on the windows or openings are original elements, which are found only at Villa Mansi. The man responsible for this decoration was the Bolognese architect Alfonso Torregiani. The facade on the back is of late Renaissance style, characterized by a large portico of the Tuscan order.
Inside there is an elliptical staircase, decorated with stucco and other ornamentation. There is a private theatre.
The park
The original layout of the garden dates to 1650 by the family Santini, although the style of French garden.
The main axis of the villa was highlighted by a row of cypress trees, approximately 700 metres, which complement the facade of the villa in perspective. At the end of the avenue, near a majestic gate that enters the house, there is located a small village, once intended for servants.
There is a small garden, enclosed by a network and used as an aviary, a fish farm with jets of water, a secret garden with Italian nymphaeum and finally the garden. The heart of the park was the Nymphaeum of Winds, by the name of the statues personifying the winds, where the paths converge.
In Florence the house at the Garden Torrigiani is sometimes referred to as Villa Torrigiani. At Scandicci (Florence) there is another Villa Torrigiani in Renaissance style, home today to a wine.
Other pictures
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Dettaglio della facciata -
The central hall -
Il The Nymphaeum wind -
The Fishpond
Bibliography
- Il tour delle ville. Le Guide di Toscana, supplemento a L'Unità, maggio 1993.