A couple of weeks ago we went to my hometown, Lucca, to visit my parents, and while we were there we decided to take the opportunity to visit one of Lucca’s many historic buildings. We opted for the Museo Nazionale di Villa Guinigi (National Museum of Villa Guinigi), which we hadn’t been to for many years, and I must say that it was an extremely pleasant rediscovery, not least because it was very quiet and tranquil after our previous day’s frenetic visit to Firenze, in fact we were the only visitors! The Museum houses artifacts ranging from the prehistoric to the late Roman period, and a collection of art works dating from the Middle Ages (Romanesque, Gothic and early Renaissance periods), up to the 18th century. These works were all created either by local artists or by artists who worked in Lucca, and they have been gathered from churches, palaces and private collections. Amongst others there are works by Jacopo della Quercia, Donatello, Matteo Civitali, Botticelli, Filippino Lippi, Guido Reni, and Giorgio Vasari. Of particular interest are the fine works in inlaid wood by Cristoforo Canozzi da Lendinara (15th century), which were originally the doors of a cupboard from the sacristy in Lucca’s Cathedral. These multi-colored intarsi (marquetries) are a kind of trompe-l’oeil of views from various Lucchese windows depicting the town as it appeared in the 15th century.

The Museum is housed in Villa Guinigi, the house that Paolo Guinigi, Lord of Lucca, ordered built for himself at the beginning of the 15th century outside the town walls. The villa was intended as a ‘country’ alternative to their town dwelling, the Palazzo Guinigi, in Lucca. Whenever I think of the Villa Guinigi I have this image in my mind of the Guinigi family getting ready to move out to their ‘country house’ for the summer holidays: multitudes of servants covering all the furniture with white dust sheets, packing numerous crates with clothes and personal belongings, everybody getting into the carriages, and finally starting the journey out to the countryside, a journey that lasted probably … less than 10 minutes! In fact Villa Guinigi is situated only about a kilometer from the Guinigi’s town palace! and although it was originally located outside the Medieval town walls, it was later enclosed within the 17th century town walls thus becoming a ‘town house’. This magnificent villa was built in red brick, which was very expensive at the time, and has a portico on the ground floor, and trefoil mullioned  windows, supported by slender white marble columns, on the upper floor. The architectural style of the building is the typical Romanesque-Gothic style, which was fashionable in Lucca at the time.

The same style also characterizes Palazzo Guinigi, the splendid town palace built by Francesco Guinigi, father of Paolo Guinigi. A corner of the building is dominated by an imposing tower, now a symbol of Lucca, standing out as it does against the town skyline, with its crown of lecci (holm-oaks). Our Cicerone (guide) at the museum explained to us that, due to the fact that Lucca is built on a water table, at the time of Paolo Guinigi there were strict laws that prevented the construction of very tall and potentially unstable buildings (like the tower of Pisa for example). To overcome the problem Paolo Guinigi, Lord of Lucca, had trees planted on the top of his tower to make it taller, and thus demonstrate his wealth and power. Tourists who don’t suffer from vertigo can now visit the top of the Torre Guinigi (Guinigi’s Tower) and enjoy spectacular panoramic views of the town, making it well worth the effort of the climb. You can find some photos of the tower here: http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torre_Guinigi 

Buona visita a Lucca!