Iconic Aristocratic Home By The Sea In Sabaudia

This iconic aristocratic estate for sale, designed by famous Milan architect Tomaso Buzzi, one of the most striking designers of the Italian 20th century, is enclosed by the Circeo National Park, in a sea-facing position among Sabaudia's dunes.

Immersed in a ten-hectare park that extends along the entire strip of land between the sea and the lake of Sabaudia, offering an exclusive double access to the water, this spectacular villa was commissioned in 1958/1959 by Countess Nathalie Volpi of Misurata, wife of Count Giuseppe Volpi, founder of the Venice Film Festival, who chose to build his buen retiro right here. It is no coincidence that the house, which still retains the name of this important Venetian family, closely linked to the world of cinema, was the backdrop for the shooting of many important films, deeply rooted in the collective imagination, including Scipione l'Africano, Divorce Italian Style, and Compagni di Scuola.

The project was personally followed by Countess Nathalie, who in the 1960s had come to architect Buzzi with a very specific request, in line with her strong personality: "faites-moi une petite folie", make me a little folly.

In designing it, the architect was inspired by neoclassical and Palladian models, halfway between ancient Greece and the Venetian villas. This two-storey building consists of a central body from which two side wings branch off, drawing a slight curve. The main block, surrounded by a colonnade, looks as sumptuous as a classical temple. The majestic entrance is anticipated by a spectacular monumental staircase which, like a walkway, allows access to the villa from the sea through the dunes. Inside, stairs return as the dominant motif in a continuous succession of twists that seem to crown the great central staircase, worthy of a palace. From here, a hall covered in marble and mahogany accompanies the three bedrooms that occupy the upper floor, while the ground floor is dedicated to state rooms, designed for welcoming guests in grand style, with a lounge and a dining room.

A second dining room, richly frescoed, occupies the right wing of the villa, next to functional spaces for the kitchens, while in the left wing the sleeping area is completed by four other bedrooms, all equipped with elegant balconies that frame the sea.

Through an underground path we reach the shores of Lake Sabaudia, where there are other buildings designed by Buzzi himself to complete this extraordinary property, including an annex for guests, a complex for staff, and a convenient garage. Two other buildings, including a cottage and a stable, appear along the 400-meter-long coastline along the lake.