The Villa Lante is a large palace with an enormous garden in Bagnaia near Viterbo. The Villa is known for the multiutde of fountains scattered around. its grounds. The palace cannot be visited.
Villa Lante Viterbo (Bagnaia)
Address, Opening Hours and Admission Price
The address of the Villa Lante is Via Jacopo Barozzi, 71 Bagnaia (tel. 0761 288008). Opening hours: From 1 November to 28 February: 08.30 to 16.30; 1 March to 15 April: 08.30 to 17.30; 16 April to 15 September: 08.30 to 19.30; 16 September to 31 October: 08.30 to 17.30. Closed: Mondays, 1st January, 1st May, 25th December. Admission: 5 euros; free for over-65s and 18s; 18-25s: 2.50 euros.
History Villa Lante
The entrance to Villa Lante is at the top of the hill at the end of the street that starts at the central square of Bagnaia.
The Villa Lante was built by order of the Cardinals Gambara and Moltanto, who wanted to turn it into a kind of retreat. Originally, it was nothing more than a hunting lodge, but gradually all kinds of constructions and a number of fountains were added.
The villa is named after one of its last owners, the Lante della Rovere family, who owned it from 1656 to 1953.
Although there is no evidence of this, it is assumed that the Villa Lante was designed by Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola in 1568. Tommaso Ghinucci may also have contributed.
The Mannerist garden occupies 4 of the park’s total 22 hectares. It is spread over four terraces. Along a central axis there is a kind of “waterway” of fountains.
The snow that fell on the Monte Cimini used to be kept in a well so that fresh food and drink could be stored there during the summer.
What to see
The Fontana del Diluvio (“Fountain of the Deluge”) collects the water that comes from a spring on Monte Cimino. From this fountain, the other fountains below are fed.
From the Fontana dei Delfini, a “Water Chain” (Catena d’Acqua) runs down to the Fontana dei Giganti, from where the water flows on to a fountain called the Tavola del Cardinale.
The next fountain is the Fontana dei Lumini, with a balustrade overlooking the typical Italian garden with the Fontana dei Quattro Mori. The four moors hold up the coat of arms of Cardinal Montalto.
On either side are two buildings decorated with authentic furniture, which cannot be visited. Although they are almost identical, they were built thirty years apart.