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Regions in Italy : Region Lazio : Province Viterbo : Comune Bomarzo

Bomarzo

Province of Viterbo, Lazio (Latium) Region, Italy

Bomarzo is a small town in the Cimini Hills. It was the fiefdom of the Orsini family whose castle is at the edge of the town.

Info

Population: about 1,600 inhabitants -- Zip/postal code: 01020 -- Phone Area Code: 0761

What to see:

The Orsini Castle and Gardens: The castle's gardens were created by Pier Francesco Orsini, Duke of Bomarzo, who was born in 1528 and lived until 1588. He was a patron of the arts and devoted his life to the happiness of his wife Julia Farnese. After her death, he to created the gardens, naming them Bosco Sacro, the Sacred Grove or Bosco dei Mostri, the Monsters' grove. The reason for this bizarre name is the many larger than life statues which populate this barren landscape. The design was possibly by Pirro Ligorio, a well known architect of his day, who was most probably also the architect of the small classical temple-like chapel in the garden, surmounted by a small domed tower. Today the garden is a major tourist attraction of the locality.

[the text above is derived from Wikipedia and is subject to the GNU licence]

Lodging in Bomarzo: