PALAZZO SERLUPI CRESCENZI

This palace is one of the best examples of Roman civil architecture of the late 16th century; built on commission by Ottaviano Crescenzi to a design by Giacomo Della Porta (1540-1602), it was however interrupted on the death of the architect, and completed only two centuries later, in the second half of the 18th century by the marquises Girolamo and Domenico Serlupi Crescenzi. The façade has an off-centre portal with architrave, surmounted by a balcony with no railing; on the sides are four windows with grilles supported by corbels; on the first floor are architraved windows with alternating triangular and centred tympanums. The windows on the second floor all have a centred gable, while those in the attic have a simple cornice. Inside, where the different phases of construction are most noticeable, is a portico with two rows of arches supported by Doric pillars, adorned with some ancient sarcophagi. From here we reach Della Porta's 16th-century courtyard; the other sides of the courtyard belong to the 18th-century phase, and consist of multi-storey buildings. At the far end is a simple basin, used as a watering place for horses. The palace is still owned by the Marquis Serlupi Crescenzi.