Palazzo Reale: tapestries on show again in the Sala degli Staffieri after 50 years
The restoration is thanks to contributions from the Compagnia di San Paolo
Torino, 11 July 2011- On the 150th Anniversary of the Unification of Italy an important new step has been taken in revisiting the historical layout of Torino’s Palazzo Reale. Thanks to contributions from the Compagnia di San Paolo the eight tapestries of the series showing the story of Dido and Aeneas have been restored and rehung in the Sala degli Staffieri of the Appartamento di Rappresentanza in Palazzo Reale.
The tapestries had last been seen by the public during the Italia ‘61 celebrations. They were then placed in storage, replaced by other works of high artistic value but of no historical relevance to the hall.
“To celebrate the 150 years of Italian Unification these eight tapestries are once again on show in the hall they were originally meant for at the time of the Kingdom of Italy, exactly 50 years after being shown to the public for the last time during the Italia ‘61 celebrations,” said the regional Director of Cultural and Landscape Heritage for Piemonte, Mario Turetta. “And this was made possible thanks to valuable contributions from the Compagnia di San Paolo, which I thank.”
The Compagnia di San Paolo is committed to restoring and enhancing Torino’s artistic heritage and particularly that to do with the so-called “Zona di Comando”, aiming to set up a hub which can integrate museums, collections and residences of Savoy origin into one system. Palazzo Reale, its centre point, has been the object of several improvements and restorations. One of the most recent has been the new museological layout of the precious tapestries of the “Reale Manifattura di Torino” which aim to reinterpret one of the halls of the aristocratic first floor of the palace, enhancing its value even more due to its being presented during the celebrations of the 150th Anniversary of the Unification of Italy, supported by the Compagnia through a host of activities.
