Palazzo Muti Papazzurri

"This palazzo should not be confused with the Palazzo Muti e Santuario della Madonna dell' Archetto"Palazzo Muti Papazzurri is a Baroque palazzo in Rome. It was built in 1660 by the architect Mattia de' Rossi, a pupil of Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

It is thought it was constructed for the newly married Pompeo Muti Papazzurri and Maria Isabella Massimo. A print of 1699 shows a large townhouse built around an open cour d'honneur. The court being entered through a triumphal arch at the centre of a Baroque screen linking the two flanking wings. The screen still remains but has today had rooms built above it, thus completely altering the open appearance of the palazzo, to a plain closed facade.

During the 18th century the palazzo formed the centre of a family complex of properties which were rented in their entirety to Stuart family a pretenders to the British throne, thus for a time the Palazzo was the home of a court in exile. [Jacobite Gazetteer]

In 1909 the palazzo was heavily restored which has changed de' Rossi's architectural concept of the original design by removing the pediments to the windows and the statuary decorating the roofline.

The 17th and 18th century interior decoration of the Palazzo has been preserved complete with their frescoed ceilings. The gallery, one of the principal reception rooms has frescos depicting scenes from classical mythology attributed to Giovanni Francesco Grimaldi and Niccolò Berrettoni. Grimaldi was one of the most fashionable painters of his day havining worked extensively for cardinal Mazarin.

Today the palazzo houses the The Pontifical Biblical Institute.

Notes

References

* [http://www.romeartlover.it/Vasi63.htm#Palazzo%20Papazzurri Palazzo Muti Papazzurri] retrieved 12 February 2007
* [http://www.jacobite.ca/gazetteer/Rome/PalazzoBalestra.htm The Jacobite Gazetteer] retrieved 13 February 2007