Palazzo Scotti

Palazzo Scotti is a prominent sixteenth-century residence on Via Mazzini in Narni. Its façade combines Renaissance details with the remains of earlier buildings, including the taller bays of a former tower house.

Why it matters

The palace is one of Narni's major works of sixteenth-century civil architecture. It was built after the town's 1527 devastation and reflects the influence of Roman architectural forms on Umbrian residences of the period.

What to notice

The façade includes shell decorations, a loggia and a notable portal and upper-storey windows. Two bays rise higher than the rest, retaining part of an earlier tower house. Inside, frescoes with biblical scenes include stories of Joshua and the arms of Cardinal Giovanni Bernardino Scotti.

Context and history

The palace was commissioned by the Scotti family in the later sixteenth century. Its precise construction date and architectural attribution remain uncertain; recent stylistic studies have proposed Ippolito Scalza, while earlier attributions included Vignola and Sangallo. The interior frescoes, once attributed to Federico Zuccari, have more recently been associated with Alessandro Torresanti. The building was later divided into residential apartments.