'' by Titian, The Galleria Borghese includes twenty rooms across two floors. The main floor is mostly devoted to classical antiquities of the 1st–3rd centuries
AD (including a famous 320–30 AD
mosaic of
gladiators found on the Borghese estate at
Torrenova, on the
Via Casilina outside Rome, in 1834), and classical and neo-classical sculpture such as the
Venus Victrix. The main floor's main large hall, called the
Salone, has a large ''
trompe-l'œil ceiling fresco in the first room by the Sicilian artist Mariano Rossi makes such good use of foreshortening that it appears almost three-dimensional. The fresco depicts Marcus Furius Camillus relieving the siege of the Capitoline Hill by the Gauls''. The
grotteschi decorations were painted by
Pietro Rotari, and the animal decorations by Venceslaus Peter Boemo. The first hall off the Salone, is the Camera di Cerere, with marble vase depicting
Oedipus and the Sphinx. The second hall has a ceiling frescoed by
Francesco Caccianiga with the
Fall of Phaeton. The third hall houses Bernini's
Apollo and Daphne.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini at the Borghese Many of the sculptures are displayed in the spaces for which they were intended, including many works by
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, which comprise a significant percentage of his output of secular sculpture, starting with early works such as the
Goat Amalthea with Infant Jupiter and Faun (1615) and
Aeneas, Anchises & Ascanius (1618–19) to his dynamic
Rape of Proserpine (1621–22),
Apollo and Daphne (1622–25) and
David (1623) which are considered seminal works of
baroque sculpture. In addition, several portrait busts are included in the gallery, including one of
Pope Paul V, and two portraits of one of his early patrons,
Cardinal Scipione Borghese (1632). The second Scipione Borghese portrait was produced after a large crack was discovered in the marble of the first version during its creation.
Halls •
Porch and Entrance Hall: The entrance hall houses a Roman statue of Augustus, the
Gladiator Mosaic, as well as the sculpture
The Truth by Bernini; •
Hall I of Pauline: Its walls are decorated with original antique reliefs and others dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. It houses busts of Valadier (Bacchus, Hermes), and in its center, the famous sculpture by Canova
Pauline Borghese as Venus Victrix, which gave its name to the room; •
Hall II of David: this hall is also called the "Room of the Sun" because of the painting on its vault representing the fall of Phaethon. The statue of
David by Bernini stands at its centre. It also features Annibale Carracci's
Samson in Prison, as well as Greek sarcophagi from the 2nd century; •
Hall III of Apollo and Daphne: it houses Bernini's sculpture
Apollo and Daphne, also the theme of the painted vault at the end of the 18th century. The hall also houses Hellenistic and Roman sculptures, and works by the painter Dosso Dossi; •
Hall IV of the Emperors: this sumptuous hall decorated with stucco, marble, frescoes and paintings, owes its name of Gallery of the Emperors to its Roman busts displayed along the walls. Antonio Asprucci carried out its decoration from 1778 to 1780, mixing precious materials and using the most advanced techniques of the time. The wall niches house antique statues, including the
Artemis Borghese, a Greek original from the 4th century. Two major works by Bernini,
The Rape of Proserpina in marble, and
Neptune with Dolphin in bronze, stand alongside the
Farnese Bull by Antonio Susini. The two dodecagonal tables are by Luigi Valadier and the four white marble vases with the
Seasons by Maximilien Laboureur (1739–1812). The Rape of Proserpina, the paragon urns by Lorenzo Nizza and the
porphyry tables and cups date from the time of Cardinal Scipione Borghese. The ceiling canvases were painted by
Domenico De Angelis, who took up the theme of the myth of
Galatea. The Sienese artist Giovan Battista Marchetti (1730–1800) created the perspective architecture of
grotesques that frame them. The
frieze painted under the
impost of the ceiling and the stucco reliefs on the walls are inspired by the theme of sea divinities. The hexagonal tiles on a blue micro
mosaic background, imitating the antique, were designed by
Tommaso Conca. The Roman mosaic
pilasters are influenced by
Raphaelesque models. The marble ornamentation of the floor is in harmony with the
trompe-l'oeil decorations of the ceiling; Roma, galleria borghese, galleria degli imperatori 02.jpg|Hall IV of the Emperors 09- Volta della Sala degli Imperatori, Galleria Borghese -FG09.jpg|Ceiling of Hall IV Emperors' Room - Galleria Borghese - Rome, Italy - DSC04759.jpg|Details •
Hall V of the Hermaphroditu:
The Sleeping Hermaphroditus is one of the 2 copies of the original bronze sculpture of
Polykleitos. The sculpture was restored by Bernini who transformed its marble base into a mattress on which the character rests. Also, a Roman mosaic from the 2nd century representing a fishing scene; •
Hall VI of Aeneas and Anchises: It houses the marble statue of
Aeneas and Anchises, a work of Bernini's youth; •
Egyptian Hall VII: made between 1778 and 1782, this hall, which houses numerous sculptures, including a marble
Faun on Dolphin from the Roman period, was designed by Antonio Asprucci. The decoration is inspired by
Ancient Egypt and is a model of the taste of the time, which mixes archaeological rarities and exotic oddities. Tommasso Conca painted the ceiling, including the central canvas with
Cybele pouring out gifts on Egypt, and the
History of Antony and Cleopatra on the walls. The architectural ornaments on the ceiling are by Giovan Battista Marchetti. On the floor, three mosaic fragments depict
mascarons of
Ocean and other marine personifications; the mosaic Roman calendar dates from the first half of the 3rd century; • '''Silenus's Hall VIII'
: during the rearrangement of the 18th century, Antonio Asprucci installed the group of Lysippus of Silenus carrying the infant Bacchus
in the center of the hall, which then took the name of "Room of Silenus". All the decoration was then arranged on the theme of Silenus. The canvas with the Sacrifice of Silenus
painted by Tommaso Conca is on the ceiling, surrounded by the monumental architectures of Giovan Battista Marchetti. Since 1834, the Dancing Satyr
has replaced the Lysippos group, now in the Louvre Museum This hall is known for containing six masterpieces by Caravaggio: Boy with a Basket of Fruit, Young Sick Bacchus, Madonna and Child with Saint Anne (Dei Palafrenieri), David and the Head of Goliath
, Saint Jerome
, and finally Saint John the Baptist''; •
Hall IX of Dido: It is entirely dedicated to Italian or foreign artists of the Renaissance, such as
Pinturicchio,
Bronzino,
Raphael,
Botticelli or
Del Sarto. There are two "tondi", one by Botticelli (
Madonna and Child with Angels) and one by Fra Bartolomeo (
Adoration of the Child), as well as two paintings by Raphael, including the
Young Woman with Unicorn. Also, a
Madonna and Child by Perugino; •
Hall X of Hercules (or Hall of Sleep): This room was called the Hall of Sleep until the end of the 18th century because of the presence of a sculpture representing the allegory of sleep. Its name was later changed to the Hercules Room because of the paintings on the vault depicting the Labors of Hercules. Works by Italian Mannerists cover the walls, such as the
Portrait of a Man by Parmesan, or the
Danaë by Correggio. The famous painting
Venus and Cupid the Honey Thief by Cranach the Elder is also there; •
Hall XI of Ganymede: the
Conversion of St Paul (1545), by Garofalo is kept there; •
Hall XII of the Bacchae: It houses a
Portrait of a Gentleman by Lorenzo Lotto (1535), and a
Holy Family by Sodoma (1510); •
Hall XIII of Celebrity •
Hall XIV Lanfranco Gallery: this gallery was originally an open loggia from which one could admire the gardens behind the villa. Closed at the end of the 18th century, the loggia was transformed into a gallery, on this occasion the fresco of the
Council of the Gods by
Giovanni Lanfranco was preserved. Several works by Bernini can be seen there, as well as the terracotta statue of Louis XIV. Numerous paintings from the 17th century cover the walls, including four "tondi" by L'Albane with mythological subjects,
The Prodigal Son by Guercino, as well as a self-portrait by Bernini; •
Hall XV of Aurora:
The Last Supper by Bassano (1546), one of the masterpieces of Mannerist painting; •
Hall XVI of Flora:
The Coral Fishing, by Jacopo Zucchi (1580), a student of Vasari, is kept there; •
Hall XVII of Gualtieri of Antwerp: It presents works by Flemish painters, such as Francken the Younger (''The Antiquarian's Shop
) or David Teniers the Younger (Drinker''); •
Hall XVIII of Jupiter and Antiope: two of the most important works by Rubens:
Susan and the Elders and
Lamentation over the Dead Christ, are kept there; •
Hall XIX of Paris and Helen: five paintings on the vault illustrate the episodes of the Trojan prince Paris. Among the many paintings, we will remember those of Domenichino (
Hunt of Diana, 1617), Annibale Carracci (
Jupiter and Juno, 1602) and Giovanni Lanfranco (
Norandino and Lucina surprised by the ogre, 1624); •
Hall XX of Psyche (or Hall of the Centaur): the ceiling from the 18th century represents the loves of Eros and Psyche. The room is dedicated to the great Venetian masters of the 15th and 16th centuries: Giorgione (
Passionate chorister, 1507), Titian (the
Sacred and Profane Love, 1514), Veronese, Carpaccio, Giovanni Bellini, Lorenzo Lotto, but also the Sicilian Antonello of Messina (
Portrait of a Man, 1475). ==Nearby museums==