Having been clever enough to discover Tredozio, you can’t miss visiting its most distinguished building, Palazzo Fantini, once the heart of a vast agricultural estate extending over large tracts of this unspoilt territory.

The Fantini family, though no longer managers of a great country estate, have lived continuously in the Palazzo since the early 1700s. The elegant façade in restrained Tuscan baroque style, completed in 1753, harmoniously unified a number of older previously existing buildings and the spaces within the Palazzo, the rooms and their lay out, the courtyards and the historic garden, tell the story of this family’s long history in this land and give a glimpse of country life in times gone by.

For more information visit www.palazzofantini.net

the palace

Tuscan baroque architectural jewel

The building is both elegant and austere, ornate and unpretentious, thus reflecting its dual origins, as the centre of a busy farm and the main residence of a wealthy family. Palazzo Fantini has been inhabited by members of a single family for almost three centuries.

The Fantini family records show that the foundations and cornerstone of the façade received a blessing on 3 May 1753, when building work began. The façade was built in the Tuscan Baroque style, and includes a balcony as well as the symbol of the family coat of arms, a cockerel. Several older buildings were joined to the façade, using the same architectural style, in order to give the entire building a more noble appearance.

the garden

An enchanting secret garden

Nothing can be guessed from outside, but after passing through the doorway into the first courtyard, guests are welcomed by a game of carved box hedges, stachys lanata and a pond containing water plants.

The garden was designed in the nineteenth century, reflecting the classical themes of the period, such as the secret paths, the fountain with water lilies, the precise geometry of the hedges, the topiary hedges and the ancient rose bushes with lamb’s ears plants and borders of “old-fashioned” flowers, such as dahlias, begonias, irises and lantanas.

the museum

Museum of Country Civilisation

Today the stables no longer contain horses and have become part of a picturesque winter garden. The hen house has disappeared, and laundry week is also a distant memory, when the whole house was turned upside-down and all the household linen was washed with lye and ash. The sharp tapping of the loom or the sputtering of wheat in sieves can no longer be heard, and yet something remains of all these elements of the past.

The buildings surrounding Palazzo Fantini have been restored and used to store agricultural machines and equipment. A little Museum of Country Civilisation has been created, divided into areas with different themes, as evidence of what was once a very active farm.

Events

A picturesque location for many events

Every summer the courtyards and the garden of Palazzo Fantini host various different types of cultural or private events.

The garden and courtyards of Palazzo Fantini provide a picturesque location for concerts, weddings, receptions, advertising and film sets, classical music and jazz concerts, art exhibitions, book presentations and literary conferences.