Palazzo Orsini di Gravina, Renaissance palace in San Lorenzo district, Naples, Italy
Palazzo Orsini di Gravina is a Renaissance palace in central Naples featuring a sturdy rusticated stone base on the ground floor and refined windows on the first floor. These windows frame circular niches with decorative busts, creating a harmonious play between solid masonry and delicate carved details.
Construction began in 1513 under nobleman Ferdinando Orsini, who acquired land adjacent to the Santa Chiara complex for the project. The building rose during a period when Naples was establishing itself as a major center of Renaissance culture and patronage.
The palace has housed the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Naples since 1940, shaping how future architects learn and develop their ideas. Students and visitors experience this historic building as an active center of creativity and architectural training.
The palace is located at Via Monteoliveto 3, near the central post office and the Piazza Monteoliveto fountain in the heart of Naples. The site sits on a major street with good foot traffic and easy pedestrian access from nearby neighborhoods.
The facade displays Doric-Corinthian capitals resting on Piperno stone pilasters, a volcanic rock material quarried locally near Naples. This dark stone gives the building a distinctive appearance that sets it apart from other Renaissance palaces in the city.
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