Palazzo Colonna Barberini, National archaeological palace in Palestrina, Italy

Palazzo Colonna Barberini is a palace in Palestrina, built directly over the remains of the ancient sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia, and it now houses the National Archaeological Museum of Palestrina. The building spans several levels that follow the natural slope of the hill, mixing Roman stonework with medieval and later construction.

The sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia, on whose terraces the palace now stands, was built in the late Roman Republic and drew pilgrims from across central Italy. In the 17th century, the Colonna family sold the property to the Barberini, who converted it into a noble residence.

The palace's name recalls the Colonna, who built its original core, and the Barberini, who bought it in 1630 and held it until the end of World War II. Cardinal Francesco Barberini had the Nile Mosaic placed here in 1640. On the second floor, the Sala dei Trofei preserves a painted frieze of landscapes and classical motifs with trophies, caryatids and telamons.

The palace belongs to the Italian State and has housed the National Archaeological Museum of Palestrina since 1956, so the whole building is public and no Barberini wing exists. The entrance is reached from the road crossing the lower terrace by a double-ramp staircase up to the former theatre cavea, where a 15th-century well stands in the centre. The facade follows the curve of the Roman portico it incorporates.

The museum holds the so-called Nile Mosaic, a large floor mosaic from the 1st century BC that depicts the Nile River during flood season, showing Egyptian landscapes, animals, and people in fine detail. It was discovered right here in Palestrina and is one of the largest surviving mosaics from the ancient world.