Villas are always called the most beautiful and luxurious buildings on the earth, and there are also a lot of famous Villas all over the world, there are five most beautiful and famous
Italian Villas you need to know:
1. Villa Rufolo, Ravello, Campaniafolo, Ravello, Campania
Villa Rufolo is located in the historic center of Ravello. Built in the 13th
century by the wealthy Rufolo family, a member of which was cited by Boccaccio
in the Decameron, the villa was also the residence of several popes as well as
of Charles of Anjou. It offers a stunning panorama over the Amalfi coast and the
Gulf of Salerno.
The German opera composer Richard Wagner was so moved by the beauty of the
location that he imagined the setting as Klingsor's enchanted garden in the
second act of Parsifal. As a tribute to this inspiration, every year the lower
garden of Villa Rufolo hosts a Wagnerian concert. Wagner said he would never
have been able to complete his ultimate masterpiece had he not been inspired by
its gripping beauty.
2. Villa San Michele, Capri
Villa San Michele was built at the end of the 19C by the Swedish psychiatrist
and writer Axel Munthe on the ruins of the Roman Emperor Tiberius‘s villa. It is
located between Capri and Anacapri, at the top of the Phoenician steps, which
connect the center of Capri with that of Anacapri. The gardens offer panoramic
views over Capri town and its marina and the Sorrentine peninsula.
The idyllic atmosphere of the villa as well as its story are recorded in Dr.
Munthe's memoirs The Story of San Michele, published in 1929. His interweaving
of the villa's story with Italian history, mythology, and culture is beautifully
reminiscent of 18th- and 19th-century travelogs.
3. Villa d'Este, Tivoli, Lazio
Villa d'Este was built for the son of Lucrezia Borgia, Cardinal Ippolito II
d'Este, in 1550. Its refined architecture and decoration testify of the spendors
of Tivoli in the 16 and 17C. It is one of the most remarkable illustrations of
Renaissance culture. The garden, with it fountains, ornamental bassins and other
decorative elements, is one of the first giardini delle meraviglie, which had a
profound influence on the development of garden design throughout Europe.
The plan of the villa is innovative and irregular in design because the
architect was obliged to respect the lay-out of the previous monastic building,
a Benedictine convent, on which the villa was built. The design is traditionally
attributed to the Neapolitan architect Pirro Ligorio (1500-83), while the works
were realized by court architect Alberto Galvani.
Lack of maintenance in the following centuries led to the decay of the
complex, but between 1867 and 1882 the Villa once again became a cultural point
of reference. The musician Franz Liszt (1811 – 1886) composed Giochi d'acqua a
Villa d'Este for piano while a guest here, and gave one of his final concerts in
the Villa in 1879.
4. Villa del Balbianello, Lake Como
Villa del Balbianello is one of the most harmonious examples of a villa with
garden, where the beauty lies in the overall effect rather than in each
individual detail. Situated on one of the few promontories of Lake Como the
villa was built for the Milanese cardinal Angelo M. Durini who wanted an
isolated site where he could receive his frivolous invitees, but also
philosophers and writers. The garden is unique in its lay-out, not following any
standards of that time, because it had to be adapted to the natural setting. The
villa was used as a setting in the James Bond movie Casino Royale.
5. Villa Carlotta, Lake Como
Villa Carlotta occupies an admirable site facing the Grigne Massif. It was
built in the late 17th century following the canons of late Lombard Baroque. In
the 19th century the residence was converted into a Neo-Classical villa.
It houses numerous statues, including a copy by Tadolini of the famous group
of Cupid and Psyche by Canova, as well as paintings by Hayez and furniture by
Magggiolini. The botanical garden contains over 800 different species and
varieties.
