Curious to put themselves in the shoes of a real “grand tourist”, our traveler will find in Valmontone and Olevano Romano, the itinerary most suitable for them. Connected by a strong scenic tradition and by a long history of commissions both modern and contemporary, the two towns look over the Valley where the river Sacco flows, promising extraordinary sights on a panorama without limits.

Our itinerary starts at Valmontone, inside the Museum of Palazzo Doria Pamphilj divided in two sections: the first, on the ground floor, dedicated to archeological finds rediscovered in the surrounded territory, and a second historical-artistic section consisting of the wonderful series of frescoes commissioned by Prince Camillo Pamfilj between 1658 and 1659. The decorations, spread over the eleven rooms of the noble floor of the Palazzo, offer an iconographic project focused on the depiction of allegories of the Four Elements and the Four Continents, made by Fransceso Cozza, Pierfrancesco Mola, Giambattista Tassi and the great Mattia Preti who, in 1661, was called to decorate the vault dedicated to Air. To conclude the itinerary is the marvelous panoramic troupe l’oeil, painted by Gaspare Dughet and Guglielmo cortese, the Borgognone, in the Salone del Principe: it is by seeing the frescoes displayed in this narrow and long hall that our visitor will finally be able to feel like a real traveler of the Grand Tour, to admire with their own eyes the expansive panoramic view people would observe from the windows of Palazzo Doria at the time. Right next to Palazzo Doria Pamphilj our traveler will find the Collegiata di Santa Maria Maggiore: built between 1685 and 1689 by the architect Mattia De Rossi – Bernini’s favourite pupil – the majestic Collegiata consecrated to the Assumption of Mary in the sky was commissioned by Prince Giovanni Battista Pamphij, in order to carry on the project of creating the ultimate “panfilia city” started by his father with the construction of the palazzo. De Rossi demolished the old gothic church and rebuilt a church inspired by Borromini’s Sant’Agnese in Agone church in Rome, with an oval plan and a facade blocked by two twin bell towers.

It is however in Olevano Romano, last stop in our itinerary through the roman countryside at the edge of the Frosinone province, that our traveler will find a contemporary trace of the landscaping tradition typical of the Grand Tour. At the Civic Museum of Art of Olevano Romano, located in the historical Villa de Pisa, visitors have the chance to admire a vast collection of works that bear witness to the deep cultural tradition that, from the early ‘800s, has placed this small town at the center of the attention of numerous european artists, fascinated by the beauty of the landscape and the authenticity of the costumes and local traditions. Among the many pieces displayed, are the works of twentieth-century and contemporary artists that have kept the tradition of the Grand Tour alive, a cultural phenomenon that’s never been interrupted here.