Rome card pass - the Palazzo Altemps - information

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Rome, Italy - the Palazzo Altemps - visit with the Rome archaeological pass

The Palazzo Altemps is one of the nine Rome museums / archaeological sites that may be visited using the Rome Archaeological pass. Below is some background information.

The turn of the millennium saw the conclusion of major works to tidy up Rome and prepare it for the new century. One of the undoubted successes was the rehabilitation of the Museo Nazionale Romano. Once a drab and dust-blown collection, and with much in storage, the works are now divided between the two marvellous new galleries of Palazzo Altemps and the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme.

‘New’ is relative in Roman terms of course, and the Palazzo Altemps, a restored Renaissance palace which now houses a superb collection of statuary, has an interesting history in itself. In ancient times this was a marble warehouse, sited near the Temple of Apollo. In the Dark Ages it was a military emplacement. But in 1477 a new, grander building was begun by Girolamo Riario. From 1511, the Cardinal of Volterra, Francesco Soderini embellished the building. By 1568 it had passed into the hands of Cardinal Marco Sittico Altemps, who used the building to display his collections of antique sculpture and books.

The Cardinal was the archetypal Renaissance figure, rediscovering works of antiquity, which would in turn fuel the creative rebirth (‘renaissance’) of Europe. How appropriate then that the palace now finds itself a Renaissance building housing classical statuary.

It includes works from the Ludovisi collection (sculptures bought by Ludovici Ludovisi, a nephew of Pope Gregory XV). These complement the fragments of the original Altemps collection that haven’t been dispersed around the globe. There are pieces from the Museo Nazionale’s Egyptian collection too.

On the ground floor there is the Courtyard, with frescoes and a marvellous mosaic fountain. Here you’ll see the Altemps coat of arms, a bridge being struck by lightning. The Hall of the Portraits has busts of the Caesars, while the Hall of the Towers exposes the ancient foundations of the palace. The Hall of the Entrance to Palazzo Riario has Aphrodite after bathing, then into the Halls of Athena, with statues of the goddess.

Upstairs you’ll find the Egyptian and Syrian pieces; the South Loggia has a bas-relief from the second century AD, showing the gods sporting on Mount Olympus. The Room of the Painted Views has fine frecoes and tapestries.

Highlights of the collection include a statue of Empreror Antoninus Pius, heads of Pluto and Zeus, and a bust of Julia, daughter of Emperoro Augustus. There are two fine (and near identical) statues of Apollo the Lyrist. There is the sculpture of Orestes and Electra, a first century sculpture by Menelaus.

See the Ludovisi Throne, dating from the fifth century, and the Ludovisi Hera. This is an idealised portrait of Antonia Augusta, mother of Emperor Claudius. Room 26 has the dramatic Galataian Soldier and His Wife Committing Suicide. This was commissioned by Julius Caesar for his Quirinal estate and adjoins the Fireplace Salon … the fireplace itself decorated with caryatids and ibex, the symbol of the Altemps family. Here you’ll see an extraordinary sarcophagus showing a battle between the Romans and the barbarians.

The Private Chapel has a fine ceiling fresco of frolicking cherubs, and ensure you see Cardinal Altemps’ bedchamber, with a marvellous wooden ceiling and a sculpture of Dionysius.

As ever, we advise you to plan both the timing and the execution of your visit. You can’t see everything, so get a good guidebook and tick your ‘must sees’ at the Palazzo Altemps. Don’t go first thing in the morning … avoid the crowds by visiting around lunchtime or in the final hour before closing.

Palazzo Altemps, Piazza Sant' Apollinare, Rome.

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