• CH & IT Roadtrip
    The state staircase has granite steps and a marble balustrade — Isola Bella, Stresa.
    Medal Room ... originally the Sala Grande, used for state banquets — Isola Bella, Stresa.Berthier Gallery Ceiling; the walls are covered with artwork in gilded frames — Isola Bella, Stresa.Sala del Trono ... so named for the monumental 18th century throne — Isola Bella, Stresa.Queen's Room ... named for the wife of the King of Sardinia, who spent two nights here — Isola BellaSalone Nuovo; last addition to the palazzo ... Mui provides perspective for the size of the room.Ceiling of Salone Nuovo — Isola Bella, Stresa.The Music Room is where the Stresa Conference was held in April 1935 — Isola Bella, Stresa.1Isola dei Pescatori from the Music Room — Isola Bella, Stresa.Photo op with Isola dei Pescatori — Isola Bella, Stresa.Ceiling detail from the Small Study — Isola Bella, Stresa.Napoleon's Room ... where Bonaparte slept in 1797 with his wife, Josephine — Isola Bella, Stresa.Luca Giordano Room ... named for his paintings; red velvet chairs belonged to Cardinal F. Borromeo.Rare saddle made with carved bone plaques on a wooden structure — Isola Bella, Stresa.Conversation Room; the table was a gift from Pope Leo XII to Count Gilberto Borromeo — Isola Bella.Ballroom ; Belgium's King Leopold was so taken with the room that he recreated a copy — Isola Bella.Display of some of the puppets used in the island's old theater — Isola Bella, Stresa."Sleeping Venus" in the third room of the Grotto Apartment — Isola Bella, Stresa.Floor and ceiling detail from the Grotto Apartment — Isola Bella, Stresa.6th Grotto; collection of saddles; architectural model of Arona Fortress (destroyed by Napoleon).Margherita Medici Room; named for her ceremonial portrait; wife of Gilberto II Borromeo.Galleria degli Arazzi; houses a collection of Flemish tapestries from around 1565 — Isola Bella.A tapestry from the Unicorn Collection; the unicorn was one of the symbols of the Borromeos.Fresco Hall ... fresco was brought here from the Borromeo Palazzo in Milan — Isola Bella, Stresa.Spiral Staircase in the Tower ... left incomplete with no decoration — Isola Bella, Stresa.

    Verbania: D2 … Isola Bella (the Palazzo)

    1 sierpnia, Włochy ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    The cruise from Isola dei Pescatori to Isola Bella was a short one … no more than five minutes. We got off the boat at a pier near the monumental palazzo that, together with extensive gardens, is the centerpiece of the island.

    When the Borromeos — a wealthy Italian noble family — first acquired the island in the early 16th century, it was little more than a barren rock. Carlo III Borromeo named the island after his wife, Isabella. After all, the island came to him as part of her dowry. In 1632, he began construction of the palazzo. The project was delayed due to a plague outbreak, and later continued by Vitaliano VI and Carlo IV … the latter adding the terraced gardens. Generations of Borromeos followed, each adding its own touch. The palazzo took its present form in 1948 with the addition of the Salone Nuovo. Members of the family still live in a part of the palazzo during the warmer months.

    Described as a Baroque art museum, the opulence of the palazzo is quite something else. Frescoed walls and ceilings; gilded ornamentations; plaster of Paris decorations that add a 3D effect; gobelin-upholstered chairs; invaluable artwork in carved and gilded frames; crystal chandeliers; gifts from Popes; marble inlay and terrazzo floors; each room named for its original purpose, historic event or a distinctive feature. All designed as acknowledgment of the family’s wealth and prestige.

    Our meander through the building took us from a throne room complete with a gilded throne topped with an embroidered silk canopy; to a sala where the centerpiece was a gilded piano with a painted lid stood; to the Napoleon Room where Bonaparte and his wife slept on 17 August 1797; to the grotto apartment … garden-level rooms that are literally encrusted with pebbles, tufa rock, marble, and seashells; to the tapestry gallery that exhibits a collection of Flemish tapestries known as the Unicorn Collection … dating back to 1565; to the La Sala della Musica … where Benito Mussolini and the heads of the French and British governments met to discuss the violations of the Versailles Treaty by the Hitler Germany. It was all over-the-top … gaudy some might say; beautiful and elegant others might find it. Interesting either way.

    Next up … the gardens.     Czytaj więcej

    Zobacz tłumaczenie