First published: 12/10/13.

Klaus Freisinger 3.0

Residences Of The Royal House Of Savoy

Residences of the Royal House of Savoy (Inscribed)

Residences of the Royal House of Savoy by Els Slots

For over 2 centuries, the monarchs of the Savoy dynasty spent their treasure on a huge series of Baroque palaces in and around their capital of Turin. I'm normally not a huge fan of Baroque architecture, but I enjoyed this site very much - each building is really interesting, most are quite beautiful, and they complement each other really well. Also, most were renovated quite recently after being neglected or closed for a long time. As individual buildings, no palace probably would have been inscribed on the list (maybe with the exception of Venaria), but as an ensemble, I daresay there is probably no equal for them (and I am from a country full of Baroque architecture). In Turin itself, I visited the great Palazzo Reale with the Royal Armoury, the Palazzo Madama with its impressive staircase (the museum collection is not so great, but the historic garden and the view from the tower shouldn't be missed), the Palazzo Carignano (housing a reasonably interesting museum on the Italian independence wars), and the Castello del Valentino on the banks of the Po (basically just from the outside, as it houses a university institute). In the surroundings of Turin, I visited the huge Venaria Palace in the suburb of Venaria Reale (a shuttle bus takes you there), which resembles Versailles in its style and dimensions (the Grand Gallery is the most impressive part), then the Castle of Rivoli (the least interesting and least beautiful; it now houses a museum of modern art), and the former hunting lodge of Stupinigi, a Baroque gem still in the process of renovation (but many parts are already open, including the impressive Grand Salon). I also really liked Turin as a city - it's usually only known for its cars, football, and a shroud of dubious origin, but it has an elegant ambience similar to Paris, with many open squares and broad boulevards, quite unlike many other Italian cities. Besides the many palaces, 2 museums stand out as highlights - the excellent Egyptian Museum and the unique and quirky Cinema Museum.

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