Finally I have got
around to visiting the Palazzo Ducale di Mantova. I have been to Mantova many
times but I have never had the time necessary to visit this vast complex.
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
Mantova was the centre
of power of the Gonzaga family who ruled a vast area around this city including
Sabbioneta the “Perfect City” built from scratch by one of the family.
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| Castello san Giorgio, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Castello san Giorgio, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Castello san Giorgio, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
After a bloody coup
d’état in 1328 against the previous rulers; this family ruled this area of
Italy until 1707.
Their palace covers
over 34,000 square metres. Unfortunately only a relatively small part can be
visited.
The Gonzaga family like many of the rulers of Italy’s city states
in this period were warriors who ruled with an iron fist and were capable of acts
of great cruelty. For example the surviving members of the previous ruling
family were chained up in a cell in the castle and left to die of starvation.
At the same time they were well read and cultured patrons of the arts as the
decoration of their palaces testifies. Quite schizophrenic.
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| The court of Ludovico Gonzaga.Camera degli Sposi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dei Sposi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
I started my tour in the castle with the “Camera
degli Sposi” a wonderful frescoed room by
Mantenga dating from the mid fifteenth
century.
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| Camera dei Sposi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dei Sposi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dei Sposi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
I was lucky that I
visited on a slow day with relatively few visitors because they usually let you
stay five minutes in this room in the high tourist season. I was able to stay
quite some time .
The next part of my
visit was to the actual palace. Like the castle, some of the rooms are still
closed after the earthquake that we suffered some time ago.
The route one takes
in the palace starts off with a couple of
rooms with fresco fragments and preparatory fresco drawings dating from the fifteenth
century before one enters with a sense of surprise the huge Salone degli
Arcieri.
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| Sala Pisanello, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
One of the side
rooms one find the neo classic Sala dei
Specchi which for me was one of the highlights of the visit.
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| Sala dei Specchi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Sala dei Specchi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Sala dei Specchi, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
One then passes
through a series of small rooms including the Stanza del Labirinto with its fantastic
labyrinth ceiling.
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| Salone degli Arcieri, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Stanza del Labirinto,Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
Visiting the palace
is a series of surprises including the
Camera dello Zodiaco with its
astrological ceiling that dates from 1579.
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| Camera dello Zodiaco, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dello Zodiaco, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dello Zodiaco, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Camera dello Zodiaco, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
The last of the large
rooms that I saw was the Sala dei Fiumi with its frescoes representing the
rivers around Mantova. It also has a couple of Grottoes, one at each end. The
decorations one sees here date from 1775.
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| Sala dei Fiumi,Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Sala dei Fiumi,Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Sala dei Fiumi,Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Sala dei Fiumi,Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
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| Palazzo Ducale, Mantova |
I must admit that I
expected a bit more from this palace after seeing Sabbioneta and fantastic Palazzo
Te also in Mantova. But it was well worth the visit all the same.
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| Mantova |
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| Mantova |
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