PALACES AND HISTORIC BUILDINGS
VILLA GHILLINI
This ancient, elegant, noble home represents a rare example of continuous habitation from the 1st century B.C. to the present. Excavations carried out at the end of the 19th century brought to light remnants of walls, floors and a bath coming from the late Roman Republican era. Fortified in the Middle Ages, the building became the Castle of Casalecchio, which, from its strategic position, dominated the road, the bridge, the ford through the Reno and the entire flatlands below. It was not until 1500, when the Bolognese territory was finally at peace and became part of the Papal States, that the castle finally abandoned its military function and became a private residence. First owned by the Ballantini family, it later passed to the Counts of the Cospi family who played various roles in the Bolognese government: assigned in 1406 to the citizens' Senate, they were then nominated Marquis in the 18th century. At the beginning of the 1800s the Cospis sold the villa to Prof. Giovanni Aldini, eminent scientist and politician, nephew of Luigi Galvani and brother of Antonio Aldini, who had been one of Napoleon's ministers. The villa was handed down through generations of Aldinis, into the hands of the owner Giuseppe Ghillini, thanks to whom this marvelous building, damaged in the war, has been restored to its original splendor.
VILLA MARESCALCHI
The villa stands in the middle of a vast park, part of the Tizzano estate which belonged to the Marescalchi family in the 1700s and currently belongs to the Visconti di Modrone family. In 1796 Senator Ferdinando Marescalchi was chosen to welcome Napoleon, still general at the time, who was entering Bologna with his troops. His descendent, Antonio Marescalchi rennovated the property, uniting the residence with the rustic cottages by means of a typical Bolognese-style portico, caring for the gardens, increasing the number of farm buildings and developing the agricultural business. During the Second World War, Tizzano was requisitioned and occupied by a German comando and severely bombed in April 1945. The structures and the frescoes were lost, but the lovely portico was largely unharmed. The Visconti di Modrone family has re-adapted the remaining elements to meet modern, functional criteria and re-launched the property as a renowned vineyard producing fine wines.
VILLA MARULLINA
Villa Marullina, though not in its present form, was mentioned in documents as long ago as 1466. It was rennovated and extended from 1620 to 1640, with richly decorated interiors and coffered ceilings which may have been painted by Curti and Colonna or by Mitelli. After a series of owners, the villa was inherited by the Beccadelli noble family. The last descendant of this family to live in the villa, its refined furnishings by then rather worn, was the Marquis Giacomo Beccadeli, who died in about 1980. Currently the entrance from Via Calzavecchio leads to its Park, not as full of ancient trees, nor as large as it once was, but well-adapted to its new function: the Villa, restored with respect for maintaining the splendor of its original architectural and interior designs and decorations, provides prestigious offices for a variety of companies.
VILLA IL TOIANO
This villa was built by Camillo Bolognetti and inaugurated in 1559. The project was attributed to the architect Domenico Tibaldi, but given how young he was at the time, should be considered the work of Pellegrino Tibaldi. A typical 16th century senator's villa, which integrated the servants' quarters and cottages for the peasants who worked the land into the stately residence. The name Toiano derives from the Latin word Tullius, meaning estate-owner. The villa was severely damaged during World War II, but thanks to the restoration work carried out by the current owners, the main building and the entire complex have been restored to their original spendor. The villa features four porticoes, one on each side, the most imposing of which holds up the elegant, triangular pediments of the main façade. The south-side portico faces a tree-lined path leading to the “Caffè – House”, nestled into a little wood, that in the past was used as guest quarters. The farm buildings can be found behind the villa, bordering a wide lawn graced by 18th century statues at each corner.
VILLA VOLPE
Casa Volpe is a residential complex with a unique appearance of the outer walls of its housing units, characterized by horizontal rows of exposed bricks, interspersed with parts which have been covered with simple plasterwork. The complex, designed in 1936 by Luigi Veronesi (1889-1963), features the tower-like formation of its water tank since the upward push of the acquaduct was not sufficient to reach the upper floors of the building at the time. The water tank, located in the center of a courtyard, maintains the horizontal pattern of brickwork visible on the main buildings, and now displays a large, lit-up clock, recognizable even from far away.
VILLA LUBBIA
Its name comes from a little river, not far from the land where the villa was built. At the edge of a thick forest, the building presents a wide park, enclosed by a balustrade, as to form an open balcony over the beautiful panorama of the river Reno. This building is composed of a basement and two other floors upstairs, whose access is given by two flights of stairs. Inside, the typical loggia in the hall reaches the opposite side of the building. The villa was owned by the comedy writer Alfredo Testoni, who lived there during the summer between 1910 and 1919. In this building he wrote seven comedies in the old language called “vernacolo” and 19 comedies in Italian, such as “Il nostro prossimo” and “Cenerentola”. Here he had a society life, enjoying several parties with his friends. On the 4 side doors, Testoni’s friend Augusto Majani (called Nasica from the artistic world) painted 4 spiral scroll cartouches, from which his hosts were welcomed by these 4 lines: “Come in my confident host- in this modest house- we will celebrate you- and you will be hosted joyfully”.
VILLA TALON
In the early years of the 16th century the family of Marquis Sampieri bought some land in Casalecchio, where a villa was built, remembered as “Sampieri vecchia”. Today the building is perfectly kept and it is situated inside the “Parco della Chiusa”. In the 18th century, the Marquis, who belonged to high society, built a more prestigious villa, inside the big park. A small Chinese temple and two other houses called “La Casa dell’Orso” and “La Casa dell’Eremita” were also built inside the park. When the marquis Francesco died, his only daughter Carolina, who married the count Denis Talon, inherited all his possessions. This villa hosted big parties and cultural events until the beginning of the 20th century: famous musicians such as Gioacchino Rossini and Gaetano Donizetti performed concerts here while the famous writer Stendhal visited the Villa Talon on his trip to Bologna. The beautiful villa was almost entirely destroyed due to of bombardments during the Second World War.