The Palazzo Barberini: a treasure trove of artworks
Palazzo Barberini, a prototype of Baroque art, was designed on the former site of Villa Sforza for Pope Urban VIII by Carlo Maderno, with whom both Bernini and Borromini worked. Today it houses part of an important collection of ancient art, a refined and lofty treasure chest of Italian art. It contains in its 34 rooms four major works by Caravaggio (Narcissus, St John the Baptist, Judith and Holofernes and St John in Meditation), Guido Reni's Salome, Raphael's Fornarina and Rubens' St Sebastian. The palace has a helicoidal staircase designed by Francesco Borromini; not far away from the square staircase designed in the northern area by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The Italian state acquired ownership from the Barberini/Corsini family in 1949, after an ill-judged law of 1934 allowed the family to alienate, even abroad, one third of the masterpieces in the palace. Nevertheless, what remains of the collection, thanks also to donations and subsequent acquisitions, is impressive. Since 2019, following the removal of the Armed Forces Officers' Club to another location, the museum has gained eleven new rooms, and art has marked its definitive victory.
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