3-hour museum tour
Easy - Accessible
kid-friendly tour
An exclusive guided tour to discover an original private palace of the Roman nobility.
We will open the doors of Galleria Colonna, an authentic jewel of the Roman Baroque, commissioned in the mid-1600s by Cardinal Girolamo I Colonna and his nephew Lorenzo Onofrio Colonna. Here, in the heart of Rome, time seems to stop. Luxury and marvel transport visitors to another age: the impressive gallery, 68 meters long, was the exclusive location for the last sequence of Roman Holidays (1953).
The splendid frescoes and the collection of paintings from the 16th to the 18th century make this palace, where the family has been living for 700 years, a rare example of artistic and historical continuity. Tapestries, paintings, marbles and flowers are daily maintained by the family, to preserve the authentic atmosphere of a private historical residence. Upon request with an extra ticket, it is possible to extend the tour to visit also the Princess Isabelle Apartment where you can find the famous collection of thirty-seven views of Vanvitelli, the frescoes of Pinturicchio and Bruegel and the exclusive orange trees garden. The tour will end with a pleasant walk in the Trevi district.
Some of the most representative pictures of this tour
Discover the main stops of this tour
Known in Italian as Gaspar Vanvitelli, he is widely recognized as one of the first and most famous Dutch veduta painters of the 1700s. He had a long career in Rome, where he immediately started working for the Colonna family, whose collection currently boasts thirty-nine paintings. These include some of the best views of Rome, Naples and Venice and are on show in the Vanvitelli Room of the Apartment of Princess Isabelle. It is possible to visit the Apartment of Princess Isabelle with an extra ticket.
The whole decoration of the Palace is a clear celebration of the glory of the family. For the same reason, the vault of the Hall of the Fountain is beautifully adorned by the family crest frescoed by Pinturicchio, an Italian painter lived during the Renaissance. The Hall of the Fountain is located inside the Apartment of Princess Isabelle. It is possible to visit the Apartment of Princess Isabelle with an extra ticket.
From the very beginning, the Colonna Gallery was conceived as a huge state room, which was to celebrate the victory of the Christian fleet over the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571. On the short flight of stairs leading to the Great Hall, it is possible to see a cannon ball that landed right there in 1849 during the period of the Roman Republic. As you proceed towards the Great Hall, we would like to point out the four large painted mirrors, along with the impressive series of masterpieces by Guercino, Salvator Rosa, Jacopo Tintoretto, Francesco Salviati and many others.
As you continue your visit, you enter the Room of the Apotheosis of Martin V. The room was named after the large canvas by Benedetto Luti at the center of the ceiling depicting the presentation of the family pope into heaven. This room is filled with important masterpieces: Il Mangiafagioli (The Bean Eater) by Annibale Carracci, dating from the late sixteenth century, is among the most famous ones and depicts the meal of a peasant. Three centuries later, the artwork is said to have inspired impressionist painters such as Van Gogh and Degas.
Dedicated to the family Pope, Oddone Colonna, the Throne Room in the Colonna Gallery takes its name from the presence of the throne facing the portrait of the pope, which was reserved for papal visits up until 1870, when it was common for popes to visit the palaces of the ancient families of the Roman aristocracy.
Some useful information for your experience
Expert and licensed guide, entrance ticket, full on-site assistance, sterilized earphones (from 5 people upwards).
Suggested start time: 9.30 am. Only available on Saturday. Exclusive opening on request during the week.
Italiano
English