BUONCONSIGLIO CASTLE, Magno Palazzo

Of the four large constructions that make up Buonconsiglio Castle - Castelvecchio, Torre dell’Aquila (Eagle Tower), the seventeenth-century Giunta Albertina and the Magno Palazzo – the most magnificent is undoubtedly the last. Built in a short time starting from 1528, the Magno Palazzo is the result of the urban modernization project ordered by Bernardo Clesio during the years in which he governed the principality.

It is to Clesio that Trento owes the introduction of the new Renaissance style, which has left traces of extraordinary beauty here in the rooms of the Magno Palazzo. Clesio was well aware of the value – political as well as cultural – of these rooms, since they were the residence of the prince-bishops, so he sought to engage elite artists who would be able to transform an old defensive structure into a luxurious aristocratic mansion.

To achieve this, the bishop realized he would have to take a different approach than his predecessors, who had limited their efforts to extending and modernizing Castelvecchio, and decided to embark on the construction of a new building, adjacent to the original medieval structure.

Anyone entering the reception rooms of the Magno Palazzo would immediately notice the fundamental role played by the decorations and the cycles of frescoes in the project of cultural renewal sponsored by Clesio, starting from the room that marked the official entrance to the palace, located in front of the chapel....