Palazzo Mattei di Giove

Palazzo Mattei di Giove Review

Graceful and opulent, the arcaded, multistory courtyard of this palazzo is a masterpiece of turn-of-the-17th-century style. Designed by Carlo Maderno, it is a veritable panoply of sculpted busts, heroic statues, sculpted reliefs, and Paleo-Christian epigrams, all collected by Marchese Asdrubale Mattei. Have your Nikon ready as Roman and Renaissance heads cross glances across the ages. Inside are various scholarly institutes, including the Centro Studi Americani (Center for American Studies, centrostudiamericani.org), which also contains a library of American books. Various salons are decorated with frescoes by Cortona, Lanfranco, and Domenichino.