Rome's Villa Medici

In 1587 Cardinal Ferdinando de Medici left the church after the death of his elder brother and became the grand duke of Florence. Even after Ferdinando moved to Florence, most of the sculptures remained in his Roman villa. It would have required Papal permission to remove important antiquities from Rome, but it is most likely that the collection remained because the villa was a power base for the Medici in a city which had become much more important than Florence. It was only in the eighteenth century that many important sculptures were moved from the villa to Florence.

Rome's Villa Medici was always known more for its antiquities and the fantastic view of the dome of Saint Peters than for the design of its gardens. When looking at the simple design of the parterre, it is important to realize that the fantastic views over the city of Rome were always designed to be part of the garden. A more elaborate garden with the dramatic architectural elements typical of Roman gardens of this period might have competed with the views.

While the basic design of the parterre remained through the centuries, the designs within the beds did reflect changing fashions. The engraving below is by G.B. Falda and dates from around 1683. The planting shows the influence of Baroque design in which all of the beds in a parterre were given the same patterns. This was different from Renaissance gardens, which usually showed more variety in the patterns within a parterre. This print also shows the importance of the broad walk. It is as important a design element as the courtyard and parterre.