ROME.- On a crisp February morning, the usually tranquil grounds of Villa Caffarelli came alive with activity. Set against the backdrop of the Capitoline Museums, this historic villa has unveiled one of the most significant cultural events of the 2025 Holy Year: “The Farnese in Sixteenth-Century Rome. Origins and Fortune of a Collection.” The exhibition has already welcomed a steady flow of visitors eager to marvel at over 140 masterpieces—sculptures, bronzes, paintings, drawings, manuscripts, gems, and coins—from the legendary Farnese Collection, one of the grandest assemblages of the Renaissance.


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This major event has been made possible by a collaboration among some of Italy’s most respected institutions. Promoted by Roma Capitale’s Department of Culture and the Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage, and organized by Zètema Progetto Cultura in partnership with Civita Mostre e Musei, the exhibition has come to fruition through the dedicated work of its curators, Claudio Parisi Presicce and Chiara Rabbi Bernard. They spent years coordinating with museums and libraries in Rome, Naples, Florence, Parma, and even abroad—such as the Louvre in Paris, the Museum of Fine Arts and Archeology in Besançon, the Morgan Library in New York, and the Royal Collection Trust—to assemble these precious items under one roof.

Rome has always been a city of artistic wonders, but officials have worked to make this Holy Year especially vibrant. With pilgrims and cultural tourists flocking to the city, the Farnese exhibition serves as a crown jewel of the celebrations. It provides not just an opportunity for scholarly reflection but a visual feast for anyone curious about how one family’s artistic ambitions helped shape the city’s Renaissance landscape.

A Vision for the Whole City

From the outset, Councillor for Culture Massimiliano Smeriglio has emphasized the importance of inclusivity. At the exhibition’s press preview, he described how the “#Amanotesa” project is ensuring access to Rome’s cultural offerings for all residents during this Holy Year—regardless of where they live. Free shuttle buses now run from outlying neighborhoods into the historic center, making it easier than ever for Romans from the periphery to immerse themselves in the capital’s cultural life.

“Our goal is to integrate beauty and knowledge into the everyday fabric of Roman life,” Smeriglio declared. “By providing free public transport to and from major cultural sites, we’re making sure everyone has the chance to admire treasures like the Farnese Collection. This is a heritage that belongs to all of us, and we’re thrilled to welcome visitors—from here in Rome and from around the world—into these extraordinary spaces.”

This emphasis on accessibility reflects a broader mission to use art and history as bridges, uniting diverse communities. With the Farnese exhibition now open, many local families, students, and first-time museum-goers have already made the journey to Villa Caffarelli to experience the wonders on display.

How the Farnese Rose to Power

At the heart of this exhibition lies the story of the Farnese dynasty, a family that exerted immense influence over sixteenth-century Rome. Alessandro Farnese, who became Pope Paul III in 1534, led Rome through a period of reconstruction in the wake of the 1527 Sack of Rome. Seeking to revive the city’s glory, he commissioned expansive urban projects—including Michelangelo’s redesign of Piazza del Campidoglio, which still towers majestically above today’s cityscape.

Pope Paul III’s zeal for collecting antiquities laid the foundation for what would become known as the Farnese Collection. Joined in his passion by nephews Alessandro and Odoardo Farnese, he helped assemble a trove of ancient sculptures, coins, gems, and artistic masterpieces. Palazzo Farnese, near Campo de’ Fiori, soon became a testament to their ambition. Visitors in the mid-sixteenth century would have been awestruck by the grandeur of ancient masterpieces like the Farnese Hercules, the Farnese Bull, and the Farnese Flora, excavated from the Baths of Caracalla and swiftly installed in the palazzo’s courtyard.

A ‘Golden Age’ of Collecting, Revisited

From the moment it opened, the exhibition at Villa Caffarelli has immersed visitors in the grandeur of this Farnese “Golden Age.” The layout spans 12 rooms, each recreating a chapter in the family’s story and showing how the collection came to dominate the Renaissance art scene in Rome.

Room One introduces the Farnese family’s tight bond with the city, focusing on Pope Paul III’s visionary urban projects, including those he ordered ahead of the 1550 Jubilee. Visitors can see large-scale reproductions of a 1555 map highlighting the newly renovated streets and squares commissioned by the Farnese pope. It’s a striking reminder that the Farnese name was woven into Rome’s urban fabric from the start—and that the family’s cultural initiatives were an essential part of the city’s revitalization.

Moving forward, a section titled “The Architects of the Collection” showcases portraits of the key Farnese figures. Pope Paul III appears first in Raphael’s Portrait of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, and then in Titian’s Portrait of Paul III, reflecting his transformation from a powerful cardinal to the spiritual leader of Catholic Europe. Also on display are portraits of nephews Alessandro (known as the “Gran Cardinale”), Ranuccio, Ottavio, and Odoardo Farnese, as well as the remarkable Margherita of Austria, whose private collection merged with the Farnese holdings upon her death. Here, these larger-than-life personalities come into focus—not simply as historical names, but as real individuals whose tastes, alliances, and aspirations shaped their remarkable cultural pursuits.

Palazzo Farnese Brought to Life

Visitors then enter several rooms that evoke Palazzo Farnese’s original splendor. Far from being just a grand residence, the palace functioned almost like a public museum—referred to by some contemporaries as “a public school of the world.” In these galleries, visitors see how the Farnese used art to anchor their political and social status. By showcasing both ancient statues and modern Renaissance works, they drew a line of continuity between the majesty of Rome’s imperial era and the city’s sixteenth-century revival.

Among the highlights here is a tribute to the Farnese Hercules. This colossal statue, a Roman copy of a fourth-century BC bronze by Lysippos, quickly rose to superstar status among Renaissance artists. In the exhibition, visitors can study two exquisite sketches by Hendrick Goltzius that capture the statue’s dynamic musculature, plus a small bronze replica by Pietro da Barga. Nearby, three reproductions (two bronze, one porcelain) of the Farnese Bull offer insight into another colossal piece that once held pride of place in the palazzo courtyard.

Myth and Metamorphosis

One striking gallery focuses on the Carracci frescoes that adorned Palazzo Farnese’s main reception hall. These murals, based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses, were considered groundbreaking for their combination of painterly skill and mythological storytelling. While the frescoes remain in the palace—which is now home to the French Embassy—a series of preparatory drawings are on view here, offering a rare glimpse into the Carracci’s creative process.

Just as captivating are two ancient statues that once graced this hall: the Farnese Eros and the Satyr with the Infant Bacchus. Both arrived from Naples for the exhibition, marking their first return to Rome since the late eighteenth century. When visitors see these statues alongside sketches for the Carracci frescoes, they can imagine the grand reception space in its heyday, when guests strolled past gleaming marble surfaces and epic mythological scenes painted overhead.

Continuing on, “The Hall of the Philosophers” highlights pieces that once formed a thematic group around the concept of Veneres, or representations of Venus. Here, the Callipygian Venus stands out as a graceful second-century AD copy of a Greek original, celebrated for its delicate balance of idealized form and human vulnerability. Beside it, a rare bronze copy of the Camillus (the original is housed in the Capitoline Museums) offers further evidence of how Renaissance artists sought to replicate and reinterpret the beauty of antiquity.

Fulvio Orsini: The Quiet Genius

No discussion of the Farnese Collection would be complete without acknowledging Fulvio Orsini, the erudite humanist and antiquarian sometimes called the “Deus ex machina” of the enterprise. A dedicated scholar, he not only curated and safeguarded the Farnese treasures but also expanded the family library, transforming it into one of the era’s most prestigious centers for the study of ancient manuscripts and texts.

A dedicated room in the exhibition showcases Orsini’s personal cache of gems and artworks, including a Salvator Mundi panel attributed to Marcello Venusti and the Codex Capponianus from the Vatican Apostolic Library. The latter contains preparatory sketches for Orsini’s Imagines et elogia virorum, first published in 1570 and a vital reference for anyone studying Renaissance antiquarianism. Through these items, visitors gain a deeper appreciation for Orsini’s pivotal role—he was not just a librarian but also a visionary who helped define the Farnese’s curatorial approach and intellectual reach.

The Cardinal’s Private Domain

Another of the show’s highlights is “The Camerino” or “Cabinet of the Cardinal,” a private study originally decorated by Annibale Carracci for Cardinal Odoardo Farnese. The main panel, Hercules at the Crossroads—now kept at the Capodimonte Museum—portrays the hero choosing between virtue and vice. While the original painting remains in Naples, two preparatory sketches and a series of studies show Carracci’s step-by-step artistic process. Gems and coins once owned by Orsini fill nearby cases, representing the personal treasures that merged with the Farnese Collection after Orsini’s death in 1600.

The Sacred and the Sublime

The exhibition’s penultimate section, “The Rooms of Paintings and Drawings,” spotlights sacred art that once belonged to the Farnese family. Raphael’s Madonna of Divine Love, El Greco’s The Healing of the Man Born Blind, and Annibale Carracci’s Christ and the Canaanite Woman demonstrate the depth and range of the Farnese Collection. They also speak to the family’s religious devotion and their desire to commission (or acquire) works that would reinforce both spiritual piety and aesthetic excellence.

Two Collections, One Destiny

When visitors enter the final room—“Two Collections, One Destiny”—they are reminded that 1600 marks a milestone. It’s the year Orsini died, an event that, in many ways, heralded the end of the Farnese Collection’s golden era. Displayed here are items originally owned by both the Farnese family and Fulvio Orsini, brought together to illustrate how their paths converged.

El Greco’s Portrait of Giulio Clovio hangs next to the very Book of Hours Clovio once illuminated for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese—now conserved at the Morgan Library in New York. This evocative pairing underscores just how intimately the Farnese legacy has been intertwined with the work of brilliant artists and scholars from across Europe. At the center of the room stands the Farnese Casket, a stunning commission by the Gran Cardinale Alessandro Farnese, now housed in the Capodimonte Museum. Sumptuously decorated, this piece encapsulates the Farnese ethos: reverence for ancient inspiration, combined with the ingenuity of modern craftsmanship.

Embracing the Farnese Legacy

Stepping out of the final gallery, many visitors have found themselves contemplating not just the magnificence of the artworks but the sheer ambition of the Farnese family. From the bold urbanism of Pope Paul III to the scholarly diligence of Fulvio Orsini, the Farnese left an indelible mark on Rome’s cultural and political spheres.

In today’s Holy Year, the Farnese exhibit offers a timely reminder of how art, urban renewal, and collective identity can intertwine. Free shuttle buses continue to bring Romans from distant suburbs to Villa Caffarelli, a testament to the city’s resolve to make culture available to everyone. Students pour in for guided tours, senior citizens arrive on group outings, and tourists from around the globe mingle with local residents.

For many, this convergence echoes the Farnese family’s own vision—a Rome where the magnificence of the past informs the creativity of the present. In an age when ancient sculpture could inspire a Renaissance masterpiece, collectors and curators alike understood that art serves as a link between worlds, transcending borders and eras.

“The Farnese in Sixteenth-Century Rome. Origins and Fortune of a Collection” runs until May 18, 2025, inviting anyone who hasn’t yet had the chance to witness this extraordinary trove. In a city as steeped in history as Rome, it isn’t easy to stand out—but the Farnese treasures, with their blend of antiquity and Renaissance brilliance, continue to do just that. And now, with the doors of Villa Caffarelli open and the Holy Year’s festivities in full swing, it’s never been easier to step into this remarkable chapter of art history.



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