[June 2024] In addition to Teatro Bibiena, our other purpose in visiting Mantua in northern Italy this time was to visit Palazzo Te.
Mantua was the stronghold of the powerful Gonzaga family, and while the Doge’s Palace was their headquarters, Palazzo Te was a villa.
It was built between 1525 and 1535 by the famous artist Giulio Romano at the behest of Federico II Gonzaga.
It is located a little away from the centre of the old town, so it took about 20 minutes to walk there.
The entrance fee is €15 per person ( €11 for those over 65).
From the outside, the building looks like a large museum, but once inside, every room is gorgeous.
There is no furniture, so we mainly looked at the ceilings and floors.
The “Sun and Moon Room,” the room with the prominent painting of horses, the Battle Room, and the like were all stunningly beautiful, and I took pictures of each one.
But the highlight was the “Room of Giants.”
The walls and ceiling are covered in frescoes.
And the paintings are very bold.
After seeing this, it was such a powerful room that I lost interest in taking pictures of the other rooms.
According to the information board, this room is a depiction of the “Fall of the Giants” from the “Metamorphoses” by the ancient Roman poet Ovid, and was built between 1532 and 1535.
I think it’s worth visiting this palace just to see this room.
It’s a very luxurious palace, but it is said that Federico II originally asked Giulio Romano to build it because he wanted a “small mansion” for rest and entertainment.
However, since it became such a magnificent palace, important people such as the Holy Roman Emperor were invited to stay here.
By the way, before it became a palace, it was said to have been the Gonzaga family’s stables.
The architect, Giulio Romano, was friends with the famous painter Titian, and a portrait of Romano painted by Titian was also on display.
I wondered what the “Te” in Palazzo Te means.
It seems that this palace was originally on an island called Teieto, and the “Te” in Teieto is used as the name.
It’s a boring explanation, but reality may actually be something like that.
