Villa Farnesina. Photo credit Mikaul via Flickr.

VILLA FARNESINA

A Renassaince masterpiece, in the heart of Trastevere, theatre of fabulous parties and sumptuous banquets.

The Loggia of Psyche by Raphael describes the love story of Cupid and Psyche. Seems like alluding to Agostino’s love for Francesca Ordeaschi, his Venetian mistress, humble and much younger. Their fairytale wedding, held in the villa, was celebrated by the pope Leo X and attended by cardinals and noblemen.

Similarly Raphael’s Galatea is inspired by the banker’s former love for the courtesan Imperia who died prematurely. The nymph Galatea is a tribute to her legendary beauty. In seeking such a perfection Raphael wrote: ‘ to paint a beautiful woman I would need to look upon many and take the best from each.’ The composition recalls Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, that Raphael had seen in Florence and redefines the meaning of beauty in the Renaissance, based on classical ideals of proportions.

On the upper floor the Hall of Perspectives by Baldassare Peruzzi, architect of the villa and painter, offers unique views of XVI century Rome.

In the banker’s bedroom The Marriage of Alexander the Great and Roxanne by Sodoma glorifies Agostino Chigi’s relation with Francesca.