Villa Igiea

View from Gardens

Sala degli Specchifrescoed by Bergler.

Villa Igieais aneogothicformer residence, now a luxury hotel maintaining some of theart nouveau(Liberty) refurbishment completed at the dawn of the 20th-century; the hotel sits on a high outcrop overlooking the sea at Porto dell'Acquasanta, located on Salita Belmonte #43 in the quartiere of Pellegrino of the city ofPalermo,Siciy, Italy.

History and description

The structure was originally built in the late 19th-century as a castle-like villa built for the retired British admiral Cecil (or William) Domville, and purchased by the wealthy businessmanIgnazio Florio junior,who planned to convert the site into a tuberculosissanatarium.Their daughter had tuberculosis. This prompted the name change to Villa Igiea, to echo the name ofHygeia,a nymph from Greek mythology associated with health and hygiene. However, Florio was forced by investors to change plans, and commissioned a refurbishment from the architectErnesto Basile,in order to create a luxury hotel, inaugurated in 1900. The hotel still retains much of the floral decoration, including frescoes byEttore De Maria BerglerandGiovanni Enea,and some of the decor byVittorio Ducrot.The original dining salon of the hotel with Bergler frescoes is known as theSala degli SpecchiorSala Basile.

The property had fallen in decline by the second world war. It has only recently returned to function as a hotel.