User:Jroadif1/Palazzo Poli

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The Palazzo Poli is a palace in Rome, Italy, of the Baroque architectural style that was altered to form the backdrop to the Trevi Fountain.

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History

In 1566, Lelio dell'Anguillara, Duke of Ceri, purchased the Palazzo Del Monte. He commissionsed the Palazzo Ceri, in honor of himself, and hired the architect Martino Longhi the Elder. (4) In 1591, Martino Longhi the Elder died and the architect Ottaviano Masscerino was hired to finish the original project. (8)

The Borromeo family inherited Palazzo Ceri and completed multiple renovations and extensions. Eventually, in 1678, the palace was for sale. Purchased by Lucrezia Colonna, who was married to the Duke of Poli, Giuseppe Lotario Conti. Here, the palace changed names again to how it is known today, Palazzo Conti di Poli, or Palazzo Poli. The Conti family was responsible for many more extensions, including purchasing and incorporating of many adjacent buildings which formed the Piazza di Trevi. The son of Giuseppe Lotario, Duke Stefano Conti, completed these renovations, including demolishing the central portion of the building, before 1730 to allow for the building of the Trevi Fountain. (8)

The new Baroque style south facade of the building was commissioned by Nicola Salvi in 1731. (6) He hired the architect, Luigi Vanvitelli. As a setting for the fountain, Luigi Vanvitelli gave the building a new monumental facade that contains the giant order of Corinthian pilasters linking the two main storeys of the palace.

When Duke Michelangelo Conti died without heirs in 1808, the palace was inherited by his distant cousin, Duke Francesco Sforza Cesarini. It was sold to Luigi Boncompagni Ludovisi just 4 years later, and again after another 70 years. In 1888, it started to be used as office space, and wasn't acquired by the state until 1978. (8)

In Popular Culture

In the 1830s, Princess Zinaida Volkonskaya threw lavish parties in this palace.

Museum

Maria Cristina Misiti, director of the National Institute of Graphics, gave the idea to turn the building into a museum to help visitors learn more about the history of Rome and its inhabitants. (1)

''The Palazzo Poli houses a collection of copper engraving plates dated from the sixteenth century to the present. The Palazzo also houses the Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica.''