Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana
In the middle of the 16th century, with the construction of his Tuscolan villa, Alessandro Ruffini inaugurated the long series of ‘delights’ which within a short time made Frascati a famous holiday spot. Villa Rufina – which may have been borne out of an initial project by Nanni di Baccio Bigio – be...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Università Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria
2022-01-01
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| Series: | ArcHistoR Architettura Storia Restauro: Architecture History Restoration |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://pkp.unirc.it/ojs/index.php/archistor/article/view/812 |
| _version_ | 1827298914464694272 |
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| author | Yuri Strozzieri |
| author_facet | Yuri Strozzieri |
| author_sort | Yuri Strozzieri |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In the middle of the 16th century, with the construction of his Tuscolan villa, Alessandro Ruffini inaugurated the long series of ‘delights’ which within a short time made Frascati a famous holiday spot. Villa Rufina – which may have been borne out of an initial project by Nanni di Baccio Bigio – became the object of conspicuous interventions in the following century, which – because of the attribution transmitted by Alessandro Specchi’s well-known incision – were long thought to be the work of Francesco Borromini. Despite numerous studies dedicated to the complex – from the first investigations by Paolo Portoghesi to more recent monographs – the dense architectonic processes that have marked the building remain to this day insufficiently explored: the reconstruction of the first phase of construction is uncertain, and the remaining transformations dating to the 16th century are unknown. This background has inevitably made the historiographic reconstruction of the operations commissioned by Pietro Francesco Falconieri in the 1660s problematic. The present study reflects on the villa’s history in the 16th century in light of a hitherto unedited drawing which is here proposed as a possible project redacted by Giovanni Fontana for Cardinal Alessandro Sforza of Santa Fiora. These findings not only suggest new hypotheses in regards the first layout of the palazzo and update the chronology of construction, but shed new light on the complex figure of Giovanni, and redefine assumptions concerning the 16th century intervention. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T15:24:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-158650d3b7744f1e8763b21cb4c20f53 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2384-8898 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T15:24:10Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Università Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria |
| record_format | Article |
| series | ArcHistoR Architettura Storia Restauro: Architecture History Restoration |
| spelling | doaj.art-158650d3b7744f1e8763b21cb4c20f532024-04-02T06:55:59ZengUniversità Mediterranea di Reggio CalabriaArcHistoR Architettura Storia Restauro: Architecture History Restoration2384-88982022-01-0101643710.14633/AHR329630Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni FontanaYuri Strozzieri0Soprintendenza archeologia belle arti e paesaggio per la provincia di Viterbo e per l’Etruria MeridionaleIn the middle of the 16th century, with the construction of his Tuscolan villa, Alessandro Ruffini inaugurated the long series of ‘delights’ which within a short time made Frascati a famous holiday spot. Villa Rufina – which may have been borne out of an initial project by Nanni di Baccio Bigio – became the object of conspicuous interventions in the following century, which – because of the attribution transmitted by Alessandro Specchi’s well-known incision – were long thought to be the work of Francesco Borromini. Despite numerous studies dedicated to the complex – from the first investigations by Paolo Portoghesi to more recent monographs – the dense architectonic processes that have marked the building remain to this day insufficiently explored: the reconstruction of the first phase of construction is uncertain, and the remaining transformations dating to the 16th century are unknown. This background has inevitably made the historiographic reconstruction of the operations commissioned by Pietro Francesco Falconieri in the 1660s problematic. The present study reflects on the villa’s history in the 16th century in light of a hitherto unedited drawing which is here proposed as a possible project redacted by Giovanni Fontana for Cardinal Alessandro Sforza of Santa Fiora. These findings not only suggest new hypotheses in regards the first layout of the palazzo and update the chronology of construction, but shed new light on the complex figure of Giovanni, and redefine assumptions concerning the 16th century intervention.http://pkp.unirc.it/ojs/index.php/archistor/article/view/812villa rufina falconierifrascatigiovanni fontanadisegno di architetturacommittenza sforza di santa fiora |
| spellingShingle | Yuri Strozzieri Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana ArcHistoR Architettura Storia Restauro: Architecture History Restoration villa rufina falconieri frascati giovanni fontana disegno di architettura committenza sforza di santa fiora |
| title | Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana |
| title_full | Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana |
| title_fullStr | Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana |
| title_full_unstemmed | Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana |
| title_short | Alessandro Sforza di Santa Fiora and Villa Rufina at Frascati: A Proposal for Giovanni Fontana |
| title_sort | alessandro sforza di santa fiora and villa rufina at frascati a proposal for giovanni fontana |
| topic | villa rufina falconieri frascati giovanni fontana disegno di architettura committenza sforza di santa fiora |
| url | http://pkp.unirc.it/ojs/index.php/archistor/article/view/812 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yuristrozzieri alessandrosforzadisantafioraandvillarufinaatfrascatiaproposalforgiovannifontana |