THE GARDENS OF PAPAL ROME 



by Battista under Raphael's direction, we are able to 

 realise the magnificence of the original design, which was 

 never wholly executed. The chief fagade of the house, 

 looking east, was remarkable for its simple and impos- 

 ing character. The central portico was flanked by two 

 wings each ending in a tower. On the south side, a 

 stately hemicycle of Ionic pillars with niches for statues, 

 intended for use as a theatre, looked towards the Borgo 

 and St. Peter's, and, on the north, another fine portico 

 opened on the gardens. 



But the chief feature of the house was the great 

 central Loggia, a magnificent hall with three arches sup- 

 porting a lofty dome, entirely decorated with delicate 

 reliefs in stucco and fresco, in the same style as the 

 Vatican Loggia. The internal decoration of the villa 

 was carried out by Giulio Romano and Giovanni da 

 Udine. Giulio was Raphael's favourite pupil and chief 

 assistant, who painted Madonnas and frescoes from his 

 master's cartoons and acted as foreman of the vast work- 

 shop in which architects and sculptors, painters, engravers, 

 mosaic-workers, wood-carvers, and gilders were employed 

 to carry out the ideas of the master-mind. Giovanni 

 was a young Venetian who, after Giorgione's death, had 

 been recommended to Castiglione by Cardinal Grimani, 

 and placed by him in Raphael's charge. Of all the great 

 master's scholars, none had a larger share of his spirit or 

 entered more fully into his thoughts than this lad from 

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