Farnese Gardens

The Orti Farnesiani, the Farnese Gardens, sit on the northwestern Palatine Hill above the Roman Forum. They are widely regarded as one of the first private botanical gardens in Europe. From 1542 Cardinal Alessandro Farnese laid out a terraced complex on the imperial Domus Tiberiana, with ramps, fishponds, aviaries and exotic plants; the architect Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola designed the monumental sequence of portals that rises from the Forum. In the 17th century the collection was botanically pioneering, and many species newly imported from the Americas were first described to European science here. In the 19th century much of the layout was removed for archaeological excavation. Today visitors walk among remnants of ancient substructures and the surviving parterre, with a direct view of the Roman Forum from the terrace.