Palazzo Arese Borromeo

Architecture of ‘Delizia’ (a particular neoclassical Italian country house style) built in the 17th Century, the imposing Palazzo Arese Borromeo stands in the heart of the historical centre of Cesano Maderno, in the Monza area of Brianza. 

Built about halfway through the seventeenth century at the behest of Count Bartolomeo Arese, then President of the Senate of Milan, it is one of the most beautiful aristocratic palazzos in the whole of Lombardy. The whitewashed facade is understated and austere and has an ashlar portal, surmounted by a splendid wrought-iron balcony with a large, typically baroque design. Once through the entrance, you enter the main courtyard, overlooked by a delicate overhead loggia, in Genoese style, with slender columns. 

The halls of Palazzo Arese Borromeo are home to a feast of treasures. Don’t miss the reception rooms on the east side of the building, featuring splendid frescoes by masters of Milanese classicism including Ercole Procaccini and Stefano Montalto. And the “Galarietta fatta a Mosaicho”, a small gallery of mosaics and one of the most important parts of the Nymphaeum, richly decorated with frescoes and floral and geometric mosaics made using white and black river pebbles, with the mosaic of the crowned coat of arms of the Arese family standing out from the rest.

In front of the palazzo is Piazza Esedra, also known as “Square of the Theatre” because it was used as a venue for plays. It is now used for a number of cultural representations. A long, dramatic avenue leads to this square, surrounded by walls surmounted by stone pinnacles. The square also has two fountains. The other side of the palazzo is home to the large and beautiful Italian-style gardens, marked by long avenues with statues and fountains, where you can walk in the midst of nature.

Palazzo Arese Borromeo in Cesano Maderno is open to the public every weekend, with guided tours two Sundays a month. The multimedia tour with a map, available at the Infopoint and an app for scanning the QR codes to download to your smartphone are just a couple of the many new features.