Spinola Designation:
Palazzo di Angelo Giovanni e Giulio Spinola
Current Name:
same
Address:
5 Via G. Garibaldi, Genoa
Current owner(s):
Deutsche Bank and private
State of conservation:
excellent
Dates of contruction:
1558–1564
Architect:
Giovanni Ponzello
On the spinola.it site we are working on the revision of all the repertoires.
Many of these are still to be updated in content and formatting.
The palazzo was entered in the system of the Rolli as follows: 1576 (I), 1588 (II), 1599 (I), 1614 (I) and 1664 (I) .
See Rolli Days Digital Week https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8BZsyucYZs&feature=emb_logo
Via Garibaldi 5
16124 Genova
Visibility:
exterior, plus interior public areas (atrium and grand staircase). Open to the public for certain cultural events, thanks to the gracious cooperation of the owner.
Angelo Giovanni Spinola di Luccoli (d. 1560), Marquis of Arquata, acquired the lot and began construction, which ended in 1564. In 1584, his oldest son, Giulio, resumed work on the palazzo, lengthening the courtyard and, in 1592, completing the facade with its marble Juliet balconies.
Thanks to the magnificence of the palazzo, the duchess of Lorraine stayed there, on April 11, 1589; this was followed by an impressive visit by the Grandduchess of Tuscany (see Una reggia repubblicana. Atlante dei palazzi di Genova 1576-1664, edited by E. Poleggi, Turin 1998, p. 20). In 1919 the palace, which had always been the property of the Spinola family, was sold to the Crédit Commercial de France, which enclosed the courtyard and decorated it with frescoes by Bevilacqua and Aicardi. In 1926 the building was sold to the Banca d’America e d’Italia, which in 1928 added the rear building, following a plan by the architect Liccioli. The garden disappeared at this time due to changes in the roadways of the Piazza Portello. The building was damaged during World War II. In 1996 it became a Deutsche Bank branch. (see “La pittura in Liguria: il Cinquecento” edited by E. Parma, Genoa 1999) From 1930 until recently, the main floor was the office of the Circolo Artistico Tunnel, a private club.
The building has a three-part lay-out, in the style of Italian architect Galeazzo Alessi. It was built against the side of a hill, and it fell to the architect Giovanni Ponzello to deal with the steep incline. He created two wings that enclosed a small courtyard. Giulio Spinola found a way to double the size of the courtyard by digging into the tuff (volcanic rock) and extending the wings toward the hanging garden. He also added a second nymphaeum to the one that closed off the lower courtyard. The façade was decorated with frescoes by Lazzaro Tavarone and the Calvi brothers (now difficult to see, unfortunately). The frescoes on the ground floor, which recall the deeds of Gherardo, Lanfranco, and Francesco Spinola, are also the work of the Calvi brothers. The frescoes on the main floor, dating from 1592, are by Bernardo Castello, del Tavarone, and an anonymous painter from the end of the 16th century. The decoration of the Salone, however, is by Andrea Semino.
Vico San Luca, 1
16123 Genoa, Italy
c.f. 95023180102
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