Villa Rotonda (Vicenza, Italy) : Close frontal view of the east portico

Creator:

Palladio, Andrea, 1508-1580
Scamozzi, Vincenzo, 1552-1616

Published/Created:

Vicenza, Veneto, Italy
ca. 1565-1591

Date Depicted:

5/1/1996
1500 AD - 1699 AD

Materials:

stone
stucco

Notes:

The building that probably bears most lasting witness to Palladio's longing for antiquity is the Villa Almerico-Valmarana, the so-called Villa Rotonda or Villa Capra, near Vicenza, the last of Palladio's villas to be built. It is a simple, centralized structure of the kind repeatedly conceived but seldom realized in the Renaissance. At its centre is a circular sala, to which lead four narrow passages from four massive temple-front porticos approached by flights of steps. The cupola of the central room was originally based on that at the Pantheon, Rome, but in its final execution, supervised by Vincenzo Scamozzi, it was made shallower and thus less sacred in appearance. In its relationship to the surrounding countryside the Villa Rotonda is one of Palladio's masterpieces and was enormously influential. Set on a low hill with gentle approaches, it appears to draw in nature from every direction, just as, from inside, the building seems to push out into the surrounding landscape. It is an almost pure celebration of the dream of life in the country. A UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Variant Titles:

Villa Almerico-Valmarana

Topics:

Architecture -- Italy -- 16th century -- (YVRC)

Period/Style:

Renaissance

Culture:

Italian

Accession Number:

1A1-PA-VA-B11

Genre:

architecture (AAT)
houses: country houses: villas (AAT)

Format:

Image

Content Type:

Sculptures, Models, & Architecture

Rights:

Copyright Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc
The use of this image may be subject to the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) or to site license or other rights management terms and conditions. The person using the image is liable for any infringement.

Access Restrictions:

Yale Community Only

Digital:

architectural exteriors; landscapes; topographical views construction buildings; dwellings; houses; country houses; villas portico; pediment

Source Creator:

Gilchrist, Scott

Source Title:

Archivision Base Collection

Source Created:

2878 Chamonix, Montreal QC
Archivision, Inc.
5/1/1996

Source Note:

Purchase, Visual Resources Collection, May, 2011; photographer Scott Gilchrist

Yale Collection:

Visual Resources Collection

Digital Collection:

Visual Resources Collection

Local Record Number:

4152

OID:

10091314

PID:

digcoll:1859657