Villa del Priorato di Malta

Constructed on the Aventine in Rome and overlooking the Tiber and the Dome of St. Peters, is Villa del Priorato di Malta. The building is an exterritorial property of the Order of Malta and the more interesting of their two properties in Rome. Interesting to note is that the Roman headquarters of the Sovereign Order of Malta boasts of one of the world's most fascinating views. A look through the villa's green door provides a view of St. Peters Basilica Dome perfectly aligned.

Initially, the site was an ancient fortified monastery in the tenth century. Later, the Piazza was reconstructed by a series of architects from the 15th to the 17th centuries, in 1765 for instance, part of it was redone by the Grand Prior, Giovan Battista Rezzonico and was named Santa Maria del Priorato. Similarly, the gardens surrounding the villa were rebuilt by Giovanni Battista Piranesi. Piranesi also designed the order’s church Santa Maria del Priorato which offers an inside view into early Roman neoclassical architecture and is linked to Villa del Priorato di Malta by a series of parterre gardens. Alongside the gardens are fruit yards that surround a fountain built by the palazzos earliest inhabitants, the monks (Kileger 95-98).

The villa also boasts of a coffee house built by Cardinal Benedetto Pamphili and palm trees brought from the east by Louis 1 of Bavaria in the 19th century during his residency there. Although entrance to the villa itself is a rare occurrence precedented only by special occasions, it is widely known that the inside of the plaza contains a gallery of portraits of the order's central figures dating from the initiation of the Order.

Works Cited

Klieger, Paul Christiaan. The Microstates of Europe Designer Nations in a Post-Modern World. Lexington Books, 2014.