Located in the centre of Zagarolo (province of Rome), Palazzo Rospigliosi was built as a defensive structure by the Colonna family in the 12th century. Pompeo Colonna rebuilt and enlarged the village in 1580, inviting the greatest artists from Rome and the surroundings to embellish the palace and restructure the medieval Church of the Holy Annunciation in Renaissance style. During this phase, which brought the addition of the two imposing wings that encircle the courtyard and improved the interior decoration, the palace reached its maximum splendour.
Subsequently, his son, Marzio Colonna, surfaced the road and built the Cathedral of St. Lawrence on the same axis as the throne room of the palace, thereby symbolically connecting ecclesiastical and financial power.
The elegant rooms of the palace house work by numerous artists: frescoes by Zuccari and Domenichino, paintings by Guido Reni and the architectural improvements by Carlo Maderno.
Today the building houses the Toy Museum on the piano nobile of the east wing and the municipal library on the ground floor. The central keep is used for cultural events while the hanging garden often hosts civic events.
Palazzo Rospigliosi is a historical residence of Lazio.
Roma Lazio Film Commission
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