MUSEO CASA DEL PODESTÀ

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At the beginning of the 20th century, the liberal politician Ugo Da Como decided to restore to its former glory a 15th-century building which had once hosted the representative of the Republic of Venice a Lonato del Garda. For the restoration, in neo-Gothic style, he relied on the most influential Brescian architect of the time, Antonio Tagliaferri.

The residence is located in the middle of a large park that also includes the Visconti-Venetian Fortress and is part of a monumental complex built according to the testamentary dispositions of Da Como himself. In fact, the Senator allocated his entire estate to the community, founding a Foundation (institution) still active today in the protection of its cultural project, inspired by the’humanistic ideal and the legacy of Giuseppe Zanardelli.

What Da Como conceived as Citadel of Culture is located in the heart of the ancient village of Lonato del Garda, a centre that still bears witness to its historical role in the Garda hinterland.

The Podestà House Museum houses two permanent collections:

• The historical furnishings: distributed in more than twenty rooms according to the original layout, reflect the taste upper-class between the 19th and early 20th century. The collection boasts three thousand objects - including archaeological finds, period furniture, paintings and sculptures - divided between the reception rooms and private rooms.
• The Library: true soul of the house and the result of decades of antiquarian research. With over 52,000 volumes - including illuminated codices, manuscripts, incunabula and cinquecentine - this “library-house” embodies Ugo Da Como's deepest cultural vision.