Merendino Palace - Constantine
Merendino Palace - Constantine
Via Maqueda 215 – Piazza Quattro Canali.
The project for the construction of this magnificent building was commissioned in 1766 to the Arch. Andrea Giganti, from the Merendino family.
“Palazzo Costantino was begun around 1766 by Gigante but this architect of great fame at the time, and who built many important houses in Palermo, did not finish it. Marvuglia, on his return from Rome, continued its construction, adjusted the first project of the staircase and thus brought a significant expansion to the construction plan" (Hittorf and Zanth - 1835).
In 1785, therefore, the Arch. G. Venanzio Marvuglia, having modified the initial project by A. Giganti, begins the construction of the Palazzo and directs the works.
“The ownership of the Palace, in 1788, moved from the Merendino family to the Costantino family in the person of Giuseppe, Rational Master of the Kingdom. About ten years later, the well-known painter Gioacchino Martorana frescoed the ceiling of one of the halls of the building with "the allegory of conjugal love".
In 1864, following the lowering of the floor level of Via Maqueda, the building underwent the necessary modifications to adapt to the new altitude situation.
The planimetric layout of the Palazzo is articulated around a courtyard with a double loggia of the Ionic order which delimits two vestibules; from one of which the double ramp of the grand staircase develops.
Leon Dufourny, in his diary he describes it as follows:”it is embellished by a long row of red marble Ionic columns, whose style closely resembles that of Palladio's atriums and arouses a very noble effect. It is a pity that the facade and decoration of the upper floors do not match this part of the ground floor. In general, his style is not of a high level and is very far from the purity of that of Marvuglia ”.
“This palace offers an impression of grandeur due to the arrangement of the two vestibules located one at the entrance and the other at the back of the building, due to the courtyard surrounded by marble columns, due to the grandeur and richness of the main staircase. This effect is the result of a beautiful simplicity of the general distribution. It is also due to the importance of the order in the arrangement of the columns through which the cars can reach the steps of the staircase. The use of columns leaning against the side walls of the court and arranged in such a way as to offer, under the two vestibules, a perspective illusion sufficient to make one believe that this courtyard is entirely surrounded by visible columns, contributes to this great effect.
This use finds here a perfect application. This is a pseudo colonnade whose use was not neglected by the ancients and which the Giant was able to make use of. This beautiful building also has shops on the main road, a communication with another road that runs along the rear facade and finally a beautiful stable with numerous accessories" (Hittorf and Zanth - 1935) (Source of text: municipality of Palermo)
Card insertion: Ignazio Caloggero
Photo: web
Information contributions: Ignazio Caloggero Web,
Property included in the Multimedia Archive of Esoteric Cultural Heritage
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