Stupinigi Hunting Lodge

The Stupinigi Hunting Lodge (Palazzina di caccia di Stupinigi in Italian) is surely one of the most beautiful buildings of this kind from the 18th century in Europe. Located southwest of Turin, it is one of the “Savoy royal residences in Piedmont” that are listed by UNESCO.
It also today houses the Museum of Arts and Furnishings, with original objects made by the artists and craftsmen of Piedmont and which decorated the palaces of the Savoys.

It is a circular pavilion from which four diagonal wings radiate. The roof of the central body is crowned with a large statue of a stag. It is completed by farms, stables, warehouses and gardens.
Its park extends over 160,000 m2, with agricultural areas and wooded areas.
The interiors are vast, with 137 rooms and 17 galleries, including in particular the central elliptical “Grand Salon” with its glass windows covered by the copper dome, but also the chapel dedicated to Saint Humbert, the Chinese cabinets, the room of perspectives, the apartments and the rococo rooms.

History

The pavilion was built in place of a small fort of the Moncalieri, property of the Savoys from 1418. These lands were entrusted in the 16th century by Emmanuel Philibert to the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus. It is today the property of the Mauritian Order Foundation.
The construction desired by Victor Amadeus II began in 1729 with a project by the architect Filippo Juvarra, inaugurated in 1731, and was enlarged until the end of the 18th century, notably by Benedetto Alfieri.
This sumptuous residence was a place of leisure and hunting for the court of Savoy, also the privileged castle for celebrating festivities and weddings in the 18th and 19th centuries. Napoleon chose to stay there in May 1805, and it was the residence of Queen Margherita at the beginning of the 20th century. It also hosted the elephant offered by India in the 19th century.
It was returned by the State to the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus in 1925, and has housed the Museum of Furnishings since 1919.

Map and address

Piazza Principe Amedeo, 7, 10042 Stupinigi, Nichelino TO

Information

• Official website: www.ordinemauriziano.it
• Wikipedia articles: Stupinigi Hunting Lodge