Point of interest

Built close to the ancient walls of the Scaliger Castle, the villa is located in an elevated position above the town of Valeggio sul Mincio, in perfect harmony with the surrounding landscape. A typical example of a holiday residence, it stands out for its decidedly avant-garde comforts for the time: heating systems with radiators, furnishings and sanitary fittings of refined elegance and ingenuity, an external room used as a garage for one of the first cars in Valeggio. The hanging garden above the park, whose irrigation was entrusted to an ingenious system of wells, leads to an elegant loggia richly frescoed and decorated with mullioned windows with a view of the nearby Valeggio and the gentle moraine hills.

The entrance gate is in Art Nouveau style, with delicate wrought iron ornaments and the name of the villa carved on one of the front columns. In 1929, its owner, Giuseppe Zamboni, bequeathed it for public use in favour of a kindergarten and it has been owned by the municipality ever since. Citizens’ groups have long been working to restore the villa to its former glory through guided tours, information stalls and fundraising.