In Venaria, the Savoy residents surrounding Turin, many used to praise the Venaria Reale.  The Venaria Reale is an estate that once consisted of a palace, stables, gardens and a hunting reserve.  But after the arrival of Napoleon’s troops in 1798, the estate has been declining to the point that the city actually considered removing the estate to make room for public housing at one time.  But now that the region has gone through an 8-year, $300 million restoration, which started in 1999, the Venaria Reale is popular once again, and now featuring even more such as their gardens, art collections and modern entertainment.

 They had two goals in this project of restoration, also referred to as “repopulation the palace;” to make good use of 50 empty rooms and to not only fill these rooms with random historical items, but to give the visitors a sense of history; and to turn the estate into an artistic center with areas for exhibits, concerts and performances.  For the renovation they brought in British movie director, Peter Greenaway who is known for his lush cinematic treatment of architecture and costume.

 The renovation included the restoration of the original décor, 1.5 million-square-feet of stucco and plaster work, the addition of 11,000-square-feet of frescoes, 10,000 new plants, a shallow pool, a rose pergola fitted with benches, a clock tower, nearly 65 feet high in the entrance, and the restoration of the original hunting lodge, the “Palace of Diana.”

Never had the Venaria Reale been open to tourists for regular viewing until October of this year.  And it is growing very popular with locals and travelers alike.  Until March 30 visitors can view the exhibition, “The Reggia of Venaria and The Savoys:  Art, magnificence and the history of a European Court,” a show of over 400 works.  The Admission is 12 Euros.