Columns ( mainly used to support the porticoes/loggias)
Function - Villa Rotunda
Residential/ private home ( built for a retired churchman Paolo Almerico)
Mainly for elaborated entertainment and agricultural processing
Form - Villa Rotunda
Square in plan and completely symmetrical
A central two-storey rotunda
Loggias on all four fronts for views
Steps and opening to each portico leading up to the central dome via a corridor
According to Palladio, each room was proportioned with mathematical precision
Each room is slightly angled at 45 degrees from each cardinal point in order to get some sun
Statues of deities decorated each pediment
All pediments are supported by six Ionic columns
A single window is found on each portico
All principal rooms are found on the second story
Frescoes decorated the interior
Cultural Context - Villa Rotunda
Both the original owner and Palladio died before the completion of the Villa
Vincenzo scamozzi was hired by the new owners (the Capra family) and changed the high semi-circular dome intended by Palladio to a lower dome with an oculus.
Physical Context - Villa Rotunda
The villa was designed to be in complete harmony with the surrounding landscape
Built on a hilltop just outside of Vicenza, Italy
Palladio classified the building as a “palazzo” and not a villa
Historical Context - Villa Rotunda
Villa Capra/Rotunda became an inspirational architectural prototype and Monticello by Thomas Jefferson is perhaps the best known and all prototypes.