Villa and Galleria Borghese

The lavish 17th-century palace sits amid the verdant hills of Villa Borghese park, which warrants a walk, or better yet, a picnic. The art gallery was built for the wealthy and powerful art-lover Cardinal Scipione Borghese, who patronized Bernini and Caravaggio, two of Rome’s most talented artists of the early Baroque, along with several others.

Here you’ll find a number of famous paintings, including Raphael’s Deposition, Correggio’s Danae, and Titian’s Sacred and Profane Love.  The jaw-dropping collection of marble sculpture is perhaps the museum’s biggest draw. Several of Bernini’s most important works are here, including Apollo and Daphne and Rape of Persephone, both of which are striking for their detail as the maidens flee their pursuers. The sculpture of Daphne captures the moment the leaves sprout out of her arm as she becomes a Laurel tree, while Hades strong hands seems to press into the marble flesh of soft and youthful Persephone.  Bernini’s David is also on display, as in Canova’s racy portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte’s sister Pauline.

Entrance to the museum costs €10, € 5.25 for EU citizens between 18-25. Reservation is mandatory and booking well in advance is recommended.
Before or after your art extravaganza, take a spin on the Laghetto (little lake) in a paddle boat, or if you haven’t had enough, hit the nearby Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna, the National Gallery of Modern Art (Viale delle Belli Arti, 131) where there’s also a great café overlooking the gardens.

Why should I go
It’s hailed as the world’s greatest small museum.

Where
5 Piazzale del Museo Borghese. Buses: 88, 490, 495, 910. www.galleriaborghese.it

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