House of Andrea Mantegna

The House of Andrea Mantegna, managed by the Province of Mantua, is a lively art centre that hosts temporary exhibitions.

Actively involved in documentation and research, the museum collects and preserves documents and evidence illustrating the evolution of Mantua's art over the centuries in rooms on both the ground floor and first floor.

Dating back to 1476, the Mantegna House, built by the artist as his home, represents a small masterpiece of Mantua's art and architecture. Built on a piece of land donated by Ludovico II Gonzaga (perhaps as compensation for the beautiful portrait of the Gonzaga dynasty that adorns the Camera Picta o Camera degli Sposi), Andrea Mantegna built this building on two floors, attesting to the artist's genius and broad talents.

The House of Andrea Mantegna has a square plan with a central circular courtyard around which rooms are arranged, clearly inspired by the structure of the domus romana. The harmony of the building's proportions is expressed in the perfect geometrical design, in the shapes of the circle and square, cylinder and cube, one inscribed in the other.

Most of all, the house is an expression of the image that Mantegna sought to convey about himself. The inscription AB OLYMPO, appearing on a lintel in the circular courtyard, reflects the artist's pride in his work, a kind of self-portrait that once again confirms the artist's mystique.