Which Palladian villas are World Heritage Site?

Between 1994 and 1996, 24 Palladian villas built and designed by the architect Andrea Palladio became UNESCO World Heritage Site. They are present in almost every province, except in Belluno, most are in Vicenza.

Palladian villas in Vicenza

• Villa Almerico Capra, called Villa Capra, is located just outside the walls of Vicenza and is known worldwide as “La Rotonda”. It is the most well-known and probably one of the most famous and imitated.
• Villa Trissino in Cricoli was not designed by Palladio, it belonged to Gian Giorgio Trissino, a well-known humanist and diplomat well integrated into the world of nobility, who played a decisive role in his life. In the construction site of the villa, during the restoration works, Trissino knew the young stonecutter Palladio, and having noticed his talent, decided to offer him protection and support to emerge as a virtuous architect.
• Villa Godi Malinverni in Lugo di Vicenza has large gardens decorated with pools, fountains and statues and is one of the first works of Palladio. It is a center for congresses, cultural and social events.
• Villa Valmarana Bressan in Monticello Conte Otto is one of the first Palladio works.
• Villa Chiericati in Grumolo delle Abbadesse was designed around 1555 and marks a milestone in the evolution of Palladian architecture, for the first time, a pronaos of ancient temple with columns and pediment, then becoming a recurring feature, is realized on the facade of the main body.
• Villa Pisani in Lonigo was commissioned by the Pisani brothers, belonging to the group of the most prestigious and wealthy Venetian aristocrats, who helped Palladio to make a quality leap for his clients, passing from the local nobles to the rich Venetians.
• Villa Angarano Bianchi Michiel in Bassano del Grappa was commissioned by Conte Giacomo Angarano. Only the side colonnade were built on original design, the central body was built in the seventeenth century by Baldassare Longhena.
• Villa Caldogno in Caldogno has become the property of the municipality and is used for cultural activities.
• Villa Forni Cerato in Montecchio Precalcino is currently the subject of an important restoration and enhancement for educational activities and thematic meetings with international professionals.
• Villa Pojana in Pojana Maggiore.
• Villa Gazzotti Grimani in Vicenza at Bertesina.
• Villa Saraceno in Agugliaro belongs to the The Landmark Trust British charity since 1989. Palladian intervention is limited to the master body.

Villa Saraceno in Agugliaro. Picture of Paolo Bonavoglia – bicicletta.bonavoglia.eu

• Villa Thiene in Quinto Vicentino was modified two centuries later by Francesco Muttoni: a well-known architect who carried out long studies on Palladio and dedicated him a treatise called Architecture by Andrea Palladio.

Villa Thiene in Quinto Vicentino

• Barchesse di Villa Trissino in Sarego are the only remaining part of the unfinished project for a villa.
• Villa Valmarana in Bolzano Vicentino has been realized only in part on Palladio project.
• Villa Piovene in Lugo di Vicenza is not included in Palladio’s treatise, so it is not certain that it is his work. The ambitious owners Piovene probably commissioned him to modify and embellish their existing home in order to emulate the nearby villa Godi

Palladian villas in Treviso

• Villa Barbaro in Maser is an extraordinary villa with a decorative masterpiece by Paolo Veronese.

Villa Barbaro in Maser. Picture of Paolo Bonavoglia – bicicletta.bonavoglia.eu

• Villa Emo in Fanzolo di Vedelago is one of the most complete villas, has been designed after twenty years of experience.
• Villa Zeno in Donegal di Cessalto.

Palladian villas in Padua

• Villa Pisani in Montagnana is not to be confused with Villa Pisani in Stra – Venice. The building is a palace-villa without areas for agricultural activities and built like few others on two floors.
• Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese is the only one with not allegorical statues, but representing the illustrious members of the family created by Camillo Mariani.

Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese. Picture of Paolo Bonavoglia – bicicletta.bonavoglia.eu

Palladian villas in Venice

• Villa Foscari called La Malcontenta in Mira was built for the brothers Nicolò and Alvise Foscari belonging to one of the most powerful families of the Serenissima.

Villa Foscari La Malcontenta in Mira. Picture of Paolo Bonavoglia – bicicletta.bonavoglia.eu

Palladian villas in Rovigo

• Villa Badoèr called La Badoèra in Fratta Polesine.

Villa Badoer in Fratta Polesine

Palladian villas in Verona

• Villa Serego or Villa Santa Sofia is located in San Pietro in Cariano at Santa Sofia di Pedemonte. It is perhaps the most unusual, singular and hidden villa of Palladio; it is the only one with columns of rough stone and a courtyard in the center instead of the main body.

Villa Serego in San Pietro in Cariano. Picture of Paolo Bonavoglia – bicicletta.bonavoglia.eu

Thanks to the descriptions and detailed drawings published by Palladio, these villas are still today the object of study and source of inspiration for architects from all over the world. Arte 2000 is a witness to this phenomenon.
The works that we have created for the “Beaux-Arts” villa in Atlanta in the United States, including hanging fireplaces and monumental columns, belong to an architectural project of the Harrison Design studio inspired by Palladio. This project won in 2019 the “Palladio Award” and Arte 2000 was awarded for the new craft section.

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