Explore The Gardens, Art, Architecture And Music Of Villa Manin

The Villa Manin at Passariano in Codroipo, Friuli Venezia Giulia is a Venetian villa with a fascinating history that now houses a gallery and regularly hosts exhibitions, events and, even holds concerts on the grounds. It was built in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries for the Manin family, from whom it takes its name. Between the stunning grounds which surround, the history, the iconic architecture, the extensive collections and once-off exhibitions, range of events and concerts, its somewhere where you'll never be stuck for things to do. Why not find a villa with pool in Friuli Venezia Giulia and visit for yourself?

Work on the villa is thought to have begun between 1650 and 1660. It was constructed at the behest of Antonio Manin and then was continued by his grandchildren.

It is uncertain who the original architect was but the original appearance has since been lost under layers of renovations and extensions since then.

In the eighteenth century the villa was worked on by Domenico Rossi, Giovanni Ziborghi and Giogio Massari at different stages. Giannantonio Selva also worked on the estate, altering and rearranging the gardens in the nineteenth century.

Aspects of the design of the villa suggest it was originally by an architect who trained in Padua and the house is arranged over three floors around a central salone on the main floor with four halls to both the right and to left of the salone.

Above the ground floor there is a large attic of the same size as the other two floors. In the nineteenth century, under the ownership of Bortolo Cantarella, the architect Antonio Caregaro Negrin altered the façade, making something much more elaborate and fitting for a villa of its kind. The rear was not altered, however, and still remains according to the design of that first unknown architect.

In the 20th century the villa was acquired by the Agricultural Cooperative of Noventa and adapted to its own needs with offices in the main floor, a warehouse in the barns and parking lots on the grounds. In 1997, it was privately acquired and part of the 19th century buildings were made into a home and head office. The rooms on the first floor, the barns and cellar were adapted for use by wedding parties, public meetings, private and cultural events.

Villa Manin also houses a museum with a permanent exhibition of a collection of antique carriages in the stables, an armory, rooms decorated in antique furniture and paintings from the Museum of Udine, rooms with original frescoes and the so-called “Chamber of Napoleon” where he slept when signing the Treaty of Campoformio at the villa in 1797. It has also housed exhibitions of ancient art, works by Kandinsky, antiques and conventions.

As mentioned, the villa also holds concerts and will host Patti Smith on the 1st of August 2015. If this, or the villa itself, sounds like your cup of tea, be sure to check it out on your next trip to Friuli Venezia Giulia.