Vicenza, Italy - Villa Rotonda

Описание: One would be hard-pressed to name another structure that has had the influence that Andrea Palladio's design at Villa Rotonda has had on western architecture. Also known as Villa Almerico Capra Valmarana, La Rotonda, Villa Capra, and Villa Almerico Capra, one can trace this house's influence to a multitude of structures. In the U.S, it is a pretty direct line to Jefferson's Monticello and the original U.S. Capitol Building.

The video invites you to follow our trip through the entry gate and around three sides of the structure -- you may notice that the fourth side is currently closed off with scaffolding as part of what appears to be a program for cleaning the stone -- and then into the interior. The floor plan is square with a portico centered on each side. The central doors on the piano nobile (the "Noble Floor" or in American terms, the second floor) enters a small hallway with an opening on each side: to the exterior to rooms on the left and right, and to the two-story central hall. Rooms on the corners are larger. Stairs between the floor -- the photos are all taken on the main level as access was not available to the ground floor's utility spaces or the upper floor's residential functions -- are located off the central hall in spaces that convert the central hall from square to a circle.

After seeing the interior, the video circles back around the structure in a counterclockwise direction with a peek down into a lower courtyard that reveals a loggia that was erected later as part of a support space.

This architectural marvel sits on a hilltop about a mile-and-a-half south of Vicenza. For those considering a visit, there is a small parking lot (seen in one of the last photos) immediately beyond the main gate. We took a taxi from the train station (approximately $7) and then walked back into the city afterwards on a dedicated public walkway.

Photos and (limited) video were shot on a Pixel 6 Pro. While the music post-dates the building by 150 years and comes out of Germany rather than Venice, J.S. Bach's clever creativity within a structure seemed to be a good match to the visuals. In this case, the selections are Partita no. 1, BWV 825 - 5. Menuet I-II (adapted), BWV 825 - 3. Courante, Partita no. 1, and BWV 825 - 6. Gigue as performed by Simone Renzi. Recordings are found on www.https://musopen.org/music and are indicated as CC BY-NC 3.0.