Beyond its world-famous monuments, there’s a lesser-known Rome that can still leave you speechless; take, for example, Palazzo Colonna and its magnificent gardens, at the base of the Quirinal Hill. In the heart of Rome, Palazzo Colonna is one of the Eternal City’s most striking examples of Roman Baroque.
“One of the wonders of Rome”: thus Vatican Museums director Antonio Paolucci has described the Colonna Art Gallery, the main gallery inside the palace, and one of its major attractions; it houses one of the most important private art collections in the world, with works by Pintoricchio, Guido Reni, Annibale Carracci, Tintoretto and Vanvitelli.
The gallery opens its doors to the public every Saturday morning, when the palace’s gardens are also open; nature, art and history intertwine in this ‘hidden’ monumental green area.
You’ll stroll along the same paths once walked by illustrious characters like the Colonna family pope, Martino V (1417-1431), many of the family members, very powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, 22 cardinals, Petrarch, the poet Vittoria with Michelangelo, and famous warriors such as Sciarra and Marcantonio II.
At one time, the area housed a temple dating to the late 2nd-early 3rd century AD, which is thought to have been a place of worship dedicated to Saturn and Bacchus.
Major works on the gardens were carried out between the 16th and 17th century. Small bridges above Via della Pilotta were built to connect the palace with the gardens; between 1711 and 1713, the prince Filippo II Colonna commissioned the construction of a aedicule, with a statue of Marcantonio II Colonna in the center. During this time, the nymphaeum on the other side of the garden, which was decorated with ancient staues, was embellished with the addition of citrus vases and sculptures.
The Gallery and Gardens of the Colonna Palace are open every Saturday from 10 am to 1:30 pm. Guided visits run every 30 minutes.
