Villa Barbaran Grassi Nanto

Villa Barbaran was built towards the end of the sixteenth century, commissioned by the Paduan Bonfi Family. The plan of the villa consists of numerous intercommunicating rooms, arranged in a “C” shape around the central portico. The site is located in Nanto (Italy), at the foot of the Berici Hills, in a harmonious balance with the landscape.

The architect is unknown, but the magnificent frescos were executed by the Veronese painter Domenico Riccio better known as Brusasorci (Verona, 1516 - Verona, 1567). A characterizing element in Villa Barbaran is the use of Vicenza stone, in its Giallo di Nanto declination.

Vicenza stone is a material particularly appreciated for its purity and resistance, used in the Renaissance by Donatello and especially by Andrea Palladio in Venetian villas, considered among the most representative works of Italian architecture in the world and UNESCO heritage sites.

The owners of the Villa have continued the traditional manufacturing and trading of Vicenza Stone products for centuries in the workshop located just a short walk away from Villa Barbaran.