The Orient in Italy - Sammezzano Castle and Rocchetta Mattei

A Treasure Worth Saving

Every year FAI, Fondo Ambiente Italiano, which is the Italian equivalent of the National Trust, asks Italians what historical or artistic site they wish to direct funds toward. Because the list of Italian buildings and sites in need of urgent repair is a very long one and the Italian government coffers are struggling to meet the cost of it all. In order to give people a voice FAI has a website called 'I luoghi del cuore' (places of the heart) and here we have the opportunity to vote for what we think is the most urgent project. Well, in 2020 Sammezzano Castle in Tuscany made it to number 2. A railway made it to n. 1 - I will tell you about that another time.

Sammezzano castle and park are probably the opposite of what beauty in Tuscany is all about. There is nothing here of the austere and medieval simplicity of the towers of San Gimignano, or the rustic and picturesque beauty of Siena, Arezzo or Montepulciano. Sammezzano is a wonderful folly, totally Moorish inside and the result of a man's obsession with the Orient. The man in question was the marquis Ferdinando Panciatichi Ximenes d'Aragon, who belonged to the Panciatichi family, one of the most distinguished and prestigious families in Tuscany. In Renaissance times they were courtiers to the Medici family, who of course were the bankers of Europe. As his other surname Ximenez d'Aragon indicates he was also the descendent of a noble Spanish family.

Ferdinando loved the Orient and devoted forty six years of his life to converting the interior of the 16th century castle into a sumptuous and opulent Oriental palazzo. Ferdinando was also a bit of a character and a man with many talents and interests. The list of his occupations and interests is very long. He was an architect, an engineer, a botanist (he brought the first redwood tree to Italy from North America). He was also a bibliophile (his collection of books is now in the Biblioteca Nazionale di Firenze), an entrepreneur, a politician, a scientist, an early photography expert and an art collector. He owned about five hundred wonderful paintings which, alas, are now scattered in various museums worldwide.

Facade of Sammezzano Castle

Panciatichi was also a fervent supporter of Italian independence and was one of the financial backers of the three Italian wars of Independence (1848 - 1861). Somehow after the unification he became disillusioned with politics and despite owning many palaces in Florence, he spent all his time in Sammezzano. Here, not far from Florence, he employed local builders and craftsmen and designed every single aspect of his new Oriental palace. His drawings are still in existence and we can see he oversaw every tiny detail, from layouts of rooms, to the making of bricks, tiles and stuccos.

Sala Bianca (White Hall) Sammezzano Castle, Emilia Romagna

Orientalism

Ferdinando never set foot either in the Middle East, Spain or India. His knowledge came entirely from books. However, his obsession with the Orient didn't happen in a vacuum, as in the 19th century orientalism was a very significant trend, particularly in painting. Every year a congress of Orientalists would take place, and in 1878 the convention took place in Sammezzano. The trend of Orientalism in the arts had been a consequence of the economic interests that both Britain and Germany had in Asia. In Britain Charles Wilkins had gone to India with the East India Company and had been the first to create a typeface for Persian and Bengali. He had also been the first to translate from Sanskrit.

Detail of the celing, Sala del Pavone (Peacock Hall), Sammezzano Castle

Sammezzano castle cannot be visited at the moment. During the 20th century it suffered a continuous decline and a very large injection of money is needed to restore it. Thanks to the awareness raised by FAI with its Places of the Heart survey, the castle will now be on the top list of sites which will receive funds. Hopefully, in the not too distant future we will be able to visit it again.

Rocchetta Mattei

There is however another Oriental castle in Italy which is open to the public. In Emilia Romagna at about an hour drive south of Bologna you can see the Rocchetta Mattei. This had originally been a medieval fortress (Rocchetta means little fortress) and was restyled by its owner, count Cesare Mattei, into an Oriental palazzo in the 1850s. As you wind your way into the green Emilian Apennines and you reach the Rocchetta you will see the gold of its minaret cupolas glint against the blue sky and the magical outline of the palace will seem to be straight out of a fairy tale illustration.

Inside you will find yourself at times in rooms that remind you of the Alhambra, other times in gothic style halls or Art Nouveau bedrooms. There are also monumental staircases, medieval passageways and a Moorish chapel. Cesare's taste was truly eclectic.

Rocchetta Mattei, Grazzana Morandi, Emilia Romagna

Cesare Mattei, the founder of electromeopathy

Like Ferdinando Panciatichi, Cesare Mattei had also become disillusioned with politics and after a stint of political activity, like Panciatichi, he had retired to his exotic castle and dedicated himself to other things. In particular to alternative medicine. He founded in fact a new type of therapy, electromeopathy, which had great success from the 1870s to the 1930s. In case you are visualising terrifying electric chairs, please be reassured - electro simply meant that by using natural herbs and vegetables Mattei rectified the 'incorrect' electric charge of human cells.... Or so he claimed. He said he could cure certain illnesses simply with 'one onion'.

You may be thinking, that he should have stuck to architecture and renovations, but let me tell you, his remedies were very successful and he had them stored in 107 deposits worldwide, from Belgium to the United States, from Haiti to China. People clearly felt better for taking them. Placebo effect? Even Dostoevsky in the 'Karamazov Brothers' mentions count Mattei as a healer.

The root of Cesare Mattei's dedication to alternative medicine is probably to be found in his parents dying of illnesses when he was still young. It is said that he wanted to save humanity with his remedies. He, on the other hand, lived well into his 80s in his fabulous palace. Magical Rocchetta Mattei in the green Apennine hills is certainly a sanctuary of both beauty and peace. It was Dostoevsky again who said 'Beauty will save the world', and we all need beauty in our lives to feel better. Do you agree?

Entrance to Rocchetta Mattei, Grazzana Morandi, Emilia Romagna

Cappella Moresca (Moorish Chapel), Rocchetta Mattei, Grazzana Morandi, Emilia Romagna