THE ITALIAN GARDEN 



Roman gardens. The most famous is at the Palace of Caserta between 

 Naples and Rome ; this is one of the largest palaces in Europe and recalls 

 the Escurial in its vastness and desolation. 



The finest gardens in the North of Italy are to be found round the 

 Lakes of Garda, Maggiore and Como, and principally date from the late 

 seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Isola Bella upon Lake Maggiore 

 (illus., p. 63) is perhaps the most famous. Romantically situated upon one 

 of the Borromean Islands, it is a most fascinating study in garden planning. 

 The garden was begun in 1632 by Count Carlo Borromeo under] the 

 direction of Carlo 

 Fontana, but the whole 

 work was not com- 

 pleted until 1 67 1. 

 Although the concep- 

 tion of Isola Bella 

 is undoubtedly good 

 there is a great falling 

 off in the architectural 

 detail, which is often 

 coarse and lacks the 

 refinement of the 

 Roman and Floren- 

 tine villas. 



The whole dis- 

 trict round Milan, 

 especially the neigh- 

 bourhood of Varese, 



abounded in large country villas, built in the seventeenth century. 

 The flatness of the ground, which nowadays consists mostly of marsh- 

 land, was ill-suited to the making of gardens, but nevertheless in the rare 

 volumes of Alberto dal Re, Ville di Delizia di Milano, we find an inter- 

 esting series of villas, all more or less laid out in the style of Le Notre. Most 

 of these have since been abandoned for more beautiful situations on the 

 Italian lakes. A few, however, still remain, and of these the Villa of 

 Castellazzo is a well preserved specimen. Upon Lake Como the well- 

 known Villa Carlotta still attracts many sightseers. It is a characteristic 



FOUNTAIN AT VILLA CARLOTTA, CADENABBIA. 



