The Palace with its marble columns Photo: the Palace with its marble columns

The Palazzo delle Colonne di Marmo – Palace with marble columns – a historic building, Livorno, located in the quarter of Venezia Nuova. Its name originates from the two marble columns flanking the entrance on the street side of the via Borra.

At the end of the 17th century the local ruler Marco Alessandro del Borro issued a decree for the demolition of a part of the Fortezza Nuova, to the vacant land to build new homes. This quarter was a continuation of the surrounding area Venezia Nuova, which was founded in the early 17th century. Immediately there began to build their residences numerous merchants who were attracted by the proximity to the port.

About 1703, the year the merchant of Lucca Ottavio, Gamberini acquired a plot of land on the current the via Borra, defensive channel Fosso della Venezia, and built on it an elegant Palace. It is believed that the author of the project of the Palace was Giovan Battista Foggini. In the next century, the Palazzo was substantially rebuilt, and has become higher on one floor. In 1912, the year the building, whose owner was the family of Bicchierai, became the property of the society of moneylenders "Monte di Pieta", and later it housed the state archives.

The current Palazzo delle Colonne di Marmo is a rectangular structure whose sides faced the main street and the canal. The facade, which overlooks the via Borra, together with the facades of other buildings, like the Palazzo Hudgens is a single architectural ensemble. This facade, Carrara marble, without a doubt, is the most prominent part of the ensemble. Two columns in Tuscan style frame inside the main entrance and gives the building a Baroque appearance. There you can see statues depicting the seasons, and grotesque maskeroni on the Windows of the upper floor. At the entrance to the Palazzo is hidden a small patio, partially surrounded by a colonnade. Side are seen two large Windows.

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