This well-illustrated journey through 50 magnificent villas and palaces built by the Italian aristocracy covers country retreats in Tuscany and the Veneto, impressive residences in Rome and Siena, and fortress like castles and grand villas in Trieste and Sicily. Collected here for the first time, these world famous private residences are unsurpassed in their diversity and artistic grandeur. Italian Splendor offers both professional and lay readers a glimpse behind the closed doors of these family homes, which contain some of the world's most impressive and sumptuous designs.