Villa Almerico Capra “La Rotonda” – The Renaissance temple at the foot of Vicenza

History and Description

Set atop a gentle hill just outside Vicenza, Villa Almerico Capra, universally known as La Rotonda, is one of the highest expressions of Italian Renaissance architecture and the undisputed masterpiece of Andrea Palladio.

It was commissioned in 1566 by Canon Paolo Almerico, who had returned from Rome after years of service in the papal curia, with the intention of creating an elegant residence—both a symbol of balance and harmony and a spiritual retreat.

Palladio designed the villa as a centrally planned building, inspired by the Pantheon in Rome: a perfectly proportioned cube topped by a hemispherical dome, with four identical facades facing the cardinal points. Each side features an Ionic hexastyle portico, preceded by a monumental staircase that gives the villa the appearance of a classical temple.

Inside, the heart of the structure is the circular central hall, lit from above and adorned with frescoes by Alessandro Maganza and Louis Dorigny. Around it, symmetrically arranged rooms and smaller chambers are enriched with stuccoes, grotesques, and allegorical scenes. The dome, originally conceived as open like the Pantheon’s, was completed in 1585 by Vincenzo Scamozzi, who added the lantern at the top.

In 1591, the villa passed to the Capra family, who completed the interiors and added the rustic barchessa and private chapel. In 1912, it became part of the Valmarana family estate, who still own and preserve the building today.

Since 1994, La Rotonda has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as part of the listing “City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto.”

Curiosities

• The villa’s plan is symmetrical but not perfectly identical on all sides: Palladio introduced subtle variations to harmonize it with the surrounding landscape
• It is rotated 45 degrees from the cardinal points, so that each room receives sunlight at different times of day
• Goethe visited it in 1786 during his Italian Journey, calling it “one of the most luxurious works of architecture”
• It was used as a film set for Don Giovanni (1979) by Joseph Losey and Culastrisce nobile veneziano (1976) with Marcello Mastroianni
• La Rotonda has inspired buildings worldwide, including the White House in Washington, Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, and Chiswick House in London

How to Reach Villa La Rotonda

📍 Address: Via della Rotonda 45, 36100 Vicenza (VI) 📍 GPS coordinates: 45.5204° N, 11.5636° E

• By car: From Vicenza city center, follow signs for Riviera Berica (SS247). The villa is about 3 km from the center. Free parking is available near the barchessa
• By bus: Urban lines 3 and 70, stop at Riviera Berica – La Rotonda (about 500 meters from the entrance)
• On foot or by bike: Along the pedestrian and bike path connecting Vicenza to the Sanctuary of Monte Berico

Access and Visitor Information

Villa Almerico Capra “La Rotonda” is open only on days when the owners allow access, as the building is still inhabited by the Valmarana family

Opening hours:

• Friday, Saturday, Sunday: 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM and 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM
• Winter closure: January–February

Admission:

• Full: €12.00
• Reduced: €8.00 (under 18, students, over 65)
• Free: children under 6

Park access: Included in the ticket, with free visit to the panoramic gardens Interior visit: Limited to the main floor; upper floors are reserved for the owners

Info and reservations: www.villalarotonda.it Email: [email protected]

Conclusion

Villa Almerico Capra, known as La Rotonda, is far more than a residence: it is a manifesto of Renaissance thought, where proportional harmony merges with the beauty of the landscape. Every façade, fresco, and column reflects the vision of an era that sought perfection between nature and intellect.

Visiting La Rotonda means stepping into Palladio’s dream—a place where man, geometry, and light have been in dialogue for over four centuries.

photo credits of pinterest