This content was automatically translated. View the original text.
The Town Hall of Ronciglione: A 16th-Century Municipal Building with Roman Sarcophagus and Court Paintings
In 1498 the community of Ronciglione commissioned a palace to host the Town Council and the Captain of the Militia. The works were completed in 1552. The Town Hall is located on the southern side of Piazza Principe di Napoli, with portal and side walls in rusticated stonework, recalling the style of the town's Mint — the two buildings were probably by the same architect, but the Mint was destroyed in 1944, and almost nothing remains of it. The façade bears the coat of arms of Ronciglione and those of Duke Ranuccio I and Cardinal Odoardo Farnese, who wanted to transform the palazzo into the seat of the governor, the chancellery and the notarial archive.
Additions Over the Centuries
In 1714 architect Sebastiano Cipriani renovated the building, adding a clock to the façade. Since 1816 it has been the seat of the municipal administration. Inside is a Roman relief sarcophagus that for centuries functioned as the basin of the Tre Cannelle fountain — a practical use of an object from ancient times typical of Lazio villages.
Artworks in the Council Chamber
The Council Chamber houses a tempera painting from 1878 by Andrea Belloli, a painter from Ronciglione active at the court of the tsars, depicting Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi. Another painting by Alfredo Moretti documents the inauguration of the monument to Umberto I in 1906, now in the public park. A plaque on the façade commemorates the visit of Prince Vittorio Emanuele III on 20 July 1890.
