New plant restoration of the Horti Farnesiani on the Palatine Hill

More than a hundred years after Giacomo Boni ’s garden arrangement on the Palatine Hill, after the great nineteenth-century archaeological excavations had definitively unraveled what remained of the Renaissance Farnesian garden, the Colosseum Archaeological Park presented yesterday morning the new vegetal restoration of the Horti Farnesiani on the Palatine. The archaeologist-gardener, as he was called by his contemporaries, devoted most of his work and studies to botanical research, and, with the intention of reviving the spirit of the imperial gardens and the Renaissance Horti Farnesiani that, in successive stages, had graced the ancient hill, Boni repurposed in his green arrangement the plants dear to the ancients, calling them “Flora Virgiliana.” Another area of the garden instead housed new essences, harking back to the botanical garden the Farnese family had created: trees, shrubs and flowers still unknown in seventeenth-century Europe.

Time and the large number of tourists had also greatly degraded the stylistic lines of Giacomo Boni’s interventions, making it necessary to truly restore the garden. During the work, which has just been completed, some of the shrubs of the Farnesian garden, now known but once very rare, were repurposed within the parterres, completely restored.

Testifying to the vocation of an archaeological site where greenery is not only beauty but also evidence of history, the rare Acacia Farnesiana, described by Aldini in his book, has also returned to the Horti, albeit housed in a large pot so as not to create conflict with the archaeological artifacts below.

“The restoration of the gardens of the Horti Farnesiani,” said Colosseum Archaeological Park Director Alfonsina Russo, "is an important new testimony to a conservation work that includes, by integrating them, monuments and the natural environment: it is these elements that give life to the extraordinary historical landscape of our site, a landscape that the Park since its inception has been committed to protecting and enhancing in all its aspects."

New plant restoration of the Horti Farnesiani on the Palatine Hill

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.