Villa di Montevettolini
Encyclopedia
Monsummano Terme
Monsummano Terme is an comune located in the Province of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. It is located in the Valdinievole, and is a popular spa resort....
, Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, central 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...
.
History
Also called Monte Veturino, the villasVillas
Villas is a Spanish placename and surname, from the plural form of villa.*Las Villas*Las Tres Villas*La Hermandad de las Cuatro Villas*Cinco Villas*Castillo Siete Villas*Villasbuenas*Villas palladianas*Villas Boas*Benalúa de las Villas...
was built after 1595 by commission of Grand Duke Ferdinand I of Tuscany on a high hill at the feet of Monte Albano, where a large hunting reserve (the so called Parco Reale) was located. The architect was Gherardo Mechini, a pupil of Bernardo Buontalenti
Bernardo Buontalenti
Bernardo Buontalenti, byname of Bernardo Delle Girandole was an Italian stage designer, architect, theatrical designer, military engineer and artist.-Biography:Buontalenti was born in Florence....
, who included some pre-existing structures from the medieval borough, such as a fortress and a stretch of walls. The building was finished with the 1620s. The result was a a villa with a severe and compact appearance, with a polygonal plan, resembling more a defensive fortress than a patrician residence. It was used as administrative base for the Medici estates in the area.
The villa was depicted by Giusto Utens
Giusto Utens
Giusto Utens or Justus Utens was a Flemish painter who is remembered for the series of Medicean villas in lunette form that he painted for the third grand duke of Tuscany, Ferdinando I, in 1599–1602....
in a series of lunette
Lunette
In architecture, a lunette is a half-moon shaped space, either filled with recessed masonry or void. A lunette is formed when a horizontal cornice transects a round-headed arch at the level of the imposts, where the arch springs. If a door is set within a round-headed arch, the space within the...
s portraying the Medici villas. The building was frequently used by Ferdinand I; his grandson Ferdinand II sold it in 1650, together with its surrounding lands to the Bartolomei family. In 1871 it was acquired by prince Marcantonio Borghese
Borghese
Borghese is the surname of a family of Italian noble and papal background, originating as the Borghese or Borghesi in Siena, where they came to prominence in the 13th century holding offices under the commune. The head of the family, Marcantonio, moved to Rome in the 16th century and there,...
: also owner of the Villa Medici di Cafaggiolo, he restored it. The Borghese family is currently still owning the palace.