Aug 21, 2008

La Rotonda in Vicenza













La Rontonda was designed by the famous Andrea Palladio and is one of the greatest of his buildings. The villa was built in 1550 and sits ontop of a hill that overlooks the town of Vicenza. The villa has inspired many copies in London, St. Petersburg and Delhi. Also, For the competition to design the President's House in Washington, DC, Thomas Jefferson anonymously submitted a design that was a variation on the Villa Rotunda. Though James Hoban's Palladian design for what would become known as the White House was selected, the influence of the Villa Rotunda can also been seen at Jefferson's own iconic home of Monticello.

La Rotonda, was to be one of Palladio's best-known legacies to the architectural world. It may have inspired a thousand buildings to follow, but the villa was itself inspired by the Pantheon in Rome.

We were unable to see the inside because it is only open on Wednesday's so we will have to return another time to see the famous interior of this beautiful building.

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