Palazzo Baldassini

Situated in Via delle Coppelle ('le cuppelle' the so-called wine barrels), in the area of Rome known as S. Eustacchio from the 13th century onwards, Palazzo Baldassini was built on behalf of the jurist Melchiorre Baldassini by Antonio da San Gallo the younger between 1515 and 1518.

Of Neapolitan origin, a man of culture and power, lecturer in civil law at the Sapienza University, consistorial lawyer and 'lawyer of the poor', in 1512 Baldassini took part in the work of the Fifth Lateran Council with Pope Julius II.
For the construction of his palace, the jurist chose Antonio da San Gallo the Younger, an architect who inherited the legacy of Bramante with strong ties to the Farnese family, and for the pictorial decorations he turned to the so-called Raphael School, made up of his students Perin del Vaga, Giovanni da Udine, Polidoro da Caravaggio and Maturino.
From a purely architectural point of view, an examination of the plans reveals the architect's intention to recreate the Roman aristocratic domus where the courtyard (atrium) is the fulcrum of the house. Another ancient element that can easily be observed is the axial pathway that, as in the Roman insula, crosses the entire building starting from the street, crossing the vestibule (vestibulum) and the courtyard (atrium) to reach the rear garden (viridarium).
On the right-hand side of the garden is the staircase leading to the noble and reception rooms, whose windows look out onto the main façade, a prelude to that of Palazzo Farnese, which would be built a few years later by San Gallo.

The façade in Florentine Renaissance style has ground floor windows with corbelled sills and a portal with an architrave supported by columns. However, the street it overlooks is too narrow to fully appreciate its harmonious proportions. The palace is considered one of the best examples of Roman palaces of the early 16th century.

It currently houses the Luigi Sturzo Institute.