Il problema storiografico della villa tra Medioevo e Umanesimo

Abstract

The implicit, yet improper comparison with the “Renaissance villa”, has deprived Medieval extra-urban residences of theirautonomy, and left them without a proper historical and critical analysis, relegating them to a marginal and preparatoryposition. Their recognition at a national scale (Piedmont, Veneto, Emilia, Tuscany, Lazio, Sicily), presented in this numberof Opus Incertum, offers the possibility to appreciate, together with the sheer quantitative dimension of the phenomenon, thedevelopment of models and formulas of an extraordinary refined nature which reflect both how qualified the patrons whichcommissioned the works actually were, on the one hand, and the presence, on the other, of an architectural culture that hadreached a remarkable level of maturity.