|
The palace was built and decorated
with splendid paintings and stuccoes halfway through
the 16tth century by Cardinal Girolamo Capodiferro.
Purchased in 1632 by Cardinal Bernadino Spada, the
building was immediately transformed to house the
residence of the important prelate. New decorations
were done, even in view of the setting up of the
Picture gallery, where it is still possible to
admire the rich furnishings, the sculptures and two
world maps, emphasising the many interest of the
householder. Since 1926, the building has been the
seat of the Council of State, but it is still
possible to visit, in four rooms, the gallery of the
cultured prelate, with paintings by famous artists,
including Titian and Guido Reni.
|
|
Borromini began work on the
restoration of the Spada Palace around 1635. He transformed
the grand interior staircase and built the two spiral
staircases in the facade facing the garden. The most
important work, however, was the surprising Gallery in
Perspective, the wish of Cardinal Bernadino Spada,
impassioned by those baroque virtuosities.The gallery was
built in a year, frorn 1652 to 1653, in collaboration with
the Augustinian mathematician, Giovanni Maria da Bitonto. |
The virtual depth of the gallery
is about 35 metres, but the real measurement is 8.82 metres!The
optical illusion was made through the convergence of the
planes of the colonnade towards the vanishing point and the
upward slope of the mosaic floor. At the end of the recently
restored gallery, on the end wall, is the cast for a small
statue of a warrior of the Roman period placed there ha If
way th roug h the 1800s. |
