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Villa Saporiti

Ramo di Como

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Villa Saporiti, called La Rotonda for the exedra that juts towards the lake, is one of the most important neoclassical villas of Borgo Vico, in Como. It was commissioned by the Milanese Villani marquises, hosted Napoleon in 1797 and since 1950 has been the seat of the Province: offices work inside, and it can be visited only on opening days.

History

The land belonged to the Oratorian fathers and the Augustinian nuns, and the religious reforms of Joseph II put it back on the market. In 1783 the Villani marquises, Antonio and Eleonora Doria Sforza Visconti, bought a few hectares for a holiday villa. The place also had an extra merit, the closeness of Paolo Giovio’s 16th-century villa. The works were done between 1790 and 1793 according to the regional record and Oggi a Como, while Wikipedia, the Italia.it portal and the Villa Olmo project site write 1783-1793, counting from the purchase of the land; in the same regional text the summary entry gives 1791-1793.

The patron, Eleonora, did more than pay: she brought back from her travels a preliminary drawing, which the technicians in charge modified, Leopold Pollack and an architect Bianchi. According to the regional record the marquises fell out with Pollack, withdrew his commission with works already under way and turned to Luigi Cagnola for the grand staircase and for some technical problems; Wikipedia, instead, attributes the design to Pollack, reports that a mid-19th-century text gives it to Simone Cantoni and places Cagnola’s work «in a later period». In 1797 the villa hosted Napoleon Bonaparte, visiting Como.

In 1858 the marquis Apollinare Rocca Saporiti bought it from the Villani heirs, and it is his surname that stuck to it. The Province of Como bought it in 1950 and, according to the regional record, restored it between 1950 and 1953; a few years later it also bought the adjoining Villa Gallia, with which it shares the park and the present layout of the complex.

What to see

The main body is on two floors, with two symmetrical side wings, and has two very different fronts: restrained the one towards via Borgovico, scenic and lively the one facing the lake, where the exedra concentrates the decoration. Here the regional record and Italia.it see Doric columns and a crown of six sandstone statues (Jupiter, Juno, Mars, Venus, Apollo and Neptune), with medallions of river gods between the columns; Wikipedia instead writes Ionic columns and speaks of five water nymphs in the medallions, so on these details the sources do not agree. The regional record names Bernardo Gaggini for the decoration of the exedra. Towards the west, instead, a series of rectangular openings has a wider gap in the centre, with three arches.

The interior has a richness that contrasts with the sober exterior. The Hall of Honour, elliptical and two storeys high, has a lowered dome with rosettes receding in perspective; below, between the lunettes, dancing nymphs and medallions with illustrious men, many of the patron family, in a celebratory programme of the Doria Sforza Visconti. The decoration is attributed to Giorgio Fuentes and takes a model by Giocondo Albertolli. An elliptical corner sitting room, with a floor mosaic and busts of Roman emperors, repeats the motif in small. The Emperor’s Hall is split by a wall into two rooms, the more notable of which is the Etruscan Room, with walls in blue panels with grotesques, inspired by the Vatican Loggias. The grand staircase by Cagnola is reached from the atrium, where a plaque recalls Eleonora Villani’s role.

The original furnishings are scattered. Today the historic rooms display neoclassical-style furniture from the antiques market and from other villas of the Province, such as Villa Camilla in Domaso, Villa Porro Lambertenghi and Villa Amalia; for Wikipedia some of the furniture of the Etruscan Room comes from the castle of Monguzzo, and among the paintings is a 16th-century Salome with the head of Saint John.

The park, shared with Villa Gallia, has at least sixty tree species, including monumental planes, magnolias and laurels. The Villa Olmo project site says it is in exclusive use of the Province and can be visited only with authorised guided visits; two boat basins, a covered one of Villa Gallia and an open one of Villa Saporiti, allow landing from the lake.

Practical information

  • The villa is at via Borgovico 148 (Oggi a Como) or 150 (regional record); the Province’s switchboard, given by Oggi a Como and Italia.it, is 031 230111.
  • It is the seat of the Province’s offices: it cannot be visited on ordinary days. One can enter only when the Province opens it: in recent years it has done so within Ville Aperte in Brianza, with guided visits by booking (mandatory, on the initiative’s website). In autumn 2025 there were six visits a day, at 10, 11.30, 2, 3, 4 and 5 pm, over two weekends (ComoZero); in 2026 the dates, according to Corriere di Como, were 27 September and 3 and 4 October. The next dates must be checked.
  • Nearby: Villa Olmo and the Como lakefront.

Sources

On the map

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