Villa Forni Cerato
Encyclopedia
The Villa Forni Cerato is a 16th century villa
in Montecchio Precalcino
, Province of Vicenza
, northern Italy
. Its design is attributed to Andrea Palladio
and his client is assumed to have been Girolamo Forni, a wealthy wood merchant who supplied building material for a number of the Palladio's projects. The attribution to Palladio is partly on stylistic grounds, although this is a complicated issue - the building departs from the Palladian norms.
The double name Forni-Cerato, which it is always given, dates back to 1610. In that year the building, which belonged to Girolamo Forni who can be regarded as having commissioned it, passed in accordance with a provision in his will into the ownership of Giuseppe, Girolamo and Baldissera Cerato.
Both its attribution to Palladio and the assumption that Girolamo Forni had it built remain a matter of speculation. The first reference to the architect being Palladio is in eighteenth century (when it was mentioned by the architects Francesco Muttoni and Ottavio Bertotti Scamozzi). However, modern research agrees almost unanimously with their opinion.
The loggia
stands out as the dominant part of the villa on the frontal facade
. In a comparable manner to Villa Godi
, a flight of steps reaches over the basement and leads up to the loggia, which opens in a serliana. This serliana takes up the entire width of the loggia. The central axis is clearer than at the Villa Godi, partly because of the fenestration. But it is not only in this respect that the Villa Forni Cerato marks a step forward in Palladio's development; for the first time the borders between the various storeys of the facade are clearly visible. Height is structured by the triple rhythm of the cellar
storey, piano nobile
and mezzanine
storey.
Although the front serliana appears in a simplified form, a ledge projects from the foundations of the wall at the side of the round arch which leads around the loggia and meets its counterpart, where motifs are concerned, in the upper ends of the windows. A double ledge runs below the windows and connects the loggia organically with the rest of the building. Apart from its structural function, it forms both the upper and lower conclusions of two balusters, which are positioned among the outer pilasters of the serliana. If one also takes into consideration the fact that the balusters visually balance out the outer pilasters of the serliana, then the Villa Forni Cerato appears as a building in which the subordination of individual facade details with regard to the entire facade, which was characteristic of Palladio's later development, is expressed for the first time.
. The outline of the rear serliana is still visible.
Reliefs on the facade, which were removed in 1924, are recorded by a copperplate engraving by Marco Moro, but are not believed to be original features. The current reliefs, which show river gods, are twentieth-century copies based on Moro's engraving. The same is true of the coat of arms within the gable area.
Today, the only authentic sculptural decoration appears to be a mask over the round arch of the entrance serliana which is attributed to Alessandro Vittoria
.
In 1996 UNESCO
included the building in the World Heritage Site
"City of Vicenza
and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto
".
The villa is in a poor state of conservation.
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
in Montecchio Precalcino
Montecchio Precalcino
Montecchio Precalcino is a town and comune in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, Italy. It is west of Torrente Astico.The main attraction is the patrician Villa Forni Cerato, attributed by some scholars to Andrea Palladio.- Sources :*...
, Province of Vicenza
Province of Vicenza
The Province of Vicenza is a province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Its capital city is Vicenza.The province has an area of 2,723 km², and a total population of 840,000 . There are 121 comuni in the province...
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , 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...
. Its design is attributed to Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio
Andrea Palladio was an architect active in the Republic of Venice. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily by Vitruvius, is widely considered the most influential individual in the history of Western architecture...
and his client is assumed to have been Girolamo Forni, a wealthy wood merchant who supplied building material for a number of the Palladio's projects. The attribution to Palladio is partly on stylistic grounds, although this is a complicated issue - the building departs from the Palladian norms.
History
The villa was probably built in the 1540s modifying an existing building on the site.The double name Forni-Cerato, which it is always given, dates back to 1610. In that year the building, which belonged to Girolamo Forni who can be regarded as having commissioned it, passed in accordance with a provision in his will into the ownership of Giuseppe, Girolamo and Baldissera Cerato.
Both its attribution to Palladio and the assumption that Girolamo Forni had it built remain a matter of speculation. The first reference to the architect being Palladio is in eighteenth century (when it was mentioned by the architects Francesco Muttoni and Ottavio Bertotti Scamozzi). However, modern research agrees almost unanimously with their opinion.
Design
Villa Forni Cerato is relatively small in size.The loggia
Loggia
Loggia is the name given to an architectural feature, originally of Minoan design. They are often a gallery or corridor at ground level, sometimes higher, on the facade of a building and open to the air on one side, where it is supported by columns or pierced openings in the wall...
stands out as the dominant part of the villa on the frontal facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
. In a comparable manner to Villa Godi
Villa Godi
Villa Godi is a patrician villa in Lugo di Vicenza, Veneto, northern Italy. It was one of the first projects by Andrea Palladio, as attested in his monograph I quattro libri dell'architettura...
, a flight of steps reaches over the basement and leads up to the loggia, which opens in a serliana. This serliana takes up the entire width of the loggia. The central axis is clearer than at the Villa Godi, partly because of the fenestration. But it is not only in this respect that the Villa Forni Cerato marks a step forward in Palladio's development; for the first time the borders between the various storeys of the facade are clearly visible. Height is structured by the triple rhythm of the cellar
Basement
__FORCETOC__A basement is one or more floors of a building that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. Basements are typically used as a utility space for a building where such items as the furnace, water heater, breaker panel or fuse box, car park, and air-conditioning system...
storey, piano nobile
Piano nobile
The piano nobile is the principal floor of a large house, usually built in one of the styles of classical renaissance architecture...
and mezzanine
Mezzanine (architecture)
In architecture, a mezzanine or entresol is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building, and therefore typically not counted among the overall floors of a building. Often, a mezzanine is low-ceilinged and projects in the form of a balcony. The term is also used for the lowest balcony in...
storey.
Although the front serliana appears in a simplified form, a ledge projects from the foundations of the wall at the side of the round arch which leads around the loggia and meets its counterpart, where motifs are concerned, in the upper ends of the windows. A double ledge runs below the windows and connects the loggia organically with the rest of the building. Apart from its structural function, it forms both the upper and lower conclusions of two balusters, which are positioned among the outer pilasters of the serliana. If one also takes into consideration the fact that the balusters visually balance out the outer pilasters of the serliana, then the Villa Forni Cerato appears as a building in which the subordination of individual facade details with regard to the entire facade, which was characteristic of Palladio's later development, is expressed for the first time.
State of conservation
The body of the building has not undergone any significant changes with the exception of the back, which had a serliana, which was replaced by a balconyBalcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
. The outline of the rear serliana is still visible.
Reliefs on the facade, which were removed in 1924, are recorded by a copperplate engraving by Marco Moro, but are not believed to be original features. The current reliefs, which show river gods, are twentieth-century copies based on Moro's engraving. The same is true of the coat of arms within the gable area.
Today, the only authentic sculptural decoration appears to be a mask over the round arch of the entrance serliana which is attributed to Alessandro Vittoria
Alessandro Vittoria
Alessandro Vittoria was an Italian Mannerist sculptor of the Venetian school, "one of the main representatives of the Venetian classical style" and rivalling Giambologna as the foremost sculptors of the late 16th century in Italy....
.
In 1996 UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
included the building in the World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
"City of Vicenza
Vicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto
Palladian Villas of the Veneto
The City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto is a World Heritage Site protecting a cluster of works by the architect Andrea Palladio. UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage List in 1994. At first the site was called "Vicenza, City of Palladio" and only buildings in the...
".
The villa is in a poor state of conservation.
External links
- Villa Forni Cerato, CISA