Palazzo Ducale Orsini

The Orsini Ducal Palace is located in the Municipality of Solofra, in Piazza San Michele, near the Collegiate Church of San Michele Arcangelo.

Municipal offices since 1993, it was built in the second half of the 16th century by the local feudal lords, the Orsini family of Gravina. The building is the result of the skilful work of the architect Floro Campanile, embellished by workers from Cavia and an imposing structure that still expresses the Renaissance style of the structure. It became a private property in the 19th century, and was destroyed by the earthquake of 23 November 1980 and subsequently rebuilt in its original form. 

Today, Orsini Ducal Palace is distinguished by its south-facing façade, characterised by large spaces divided by a stringcourse, in which two rows of 16th-century windows open, framed by blocks of black tuff and interrupted by the imposing main entrance and central balcony. The entrance is marked by a round-arched doorway, a motif that also forms the frame of the loggia balcony above. The south-west corner of the building is surrounded by a well-squared turret that ends at the height of the main floor and which, in addition to its function as a belvedere, serves to emphasise and prepare the defensive aspect of the western side of the building. 

A barrel-vaulted atrium leads into a square courtyard with a beautiful garden and a deep well on the right-hand side: around it lie many rooms that were once used as the stables, gendarmerie, stalls, storehouses and laundry. On the back wall, two arches create just as many rooms, divided by the rear entrance hall. On the left, a Renaissance staircase with cross-vaulted arches leads to a loggia giving access to the rooms on the main floor, characterised by large halls with trussed roofs. In one of them, the walls still preserve some sections of frescoes depicting the Orsini fiefdoms, direct evidence of the territories owned by the family of Apulian origin.

A monumental building steeped in history, Orsini Ducal Palace takes the spectator on a journey back in time.