Palazzo Pfanner or Palazzo Controni-Pfanner is located on the edge of the Walls of Lucca, with access from via degli Asili 33. The construction of Palazzo Pfanner dates back to 1660. It was the Moriconi family, members of the Lucca merchant patriciate, who commissioned it. Overwhelmed by the economic bankruptcy they were forced in 1680 to sell the building to the Controni, also merchants of silk ascended to the noble rank.
The Controns dedicated themselves to the expansion of the building: around 1686 they supervised the works for the construction of the monumental staircase on a project, it is presumed, by Domenico Martinelli, architect and engineer from Lucca known for his intense activity at the European courts of Vienna and Prague; in the early eighteenth century they commissioned Filippo Juvarra in all probability to redevelop the garden behind it; always in the same period they entrusted to local 'quadraturist' painters the frescoing of the vaults of the staircase and the interior of the noble residence. It was in the residence that the Controni, in 1692, hosted Prince Federico of Denmark passing through Lucca during his Grand Tour, famous for his "flirtation" with the young local Maria Maddalena Trenta.
The story of the Pfanner family intertwined with the centuries-old history of the building in the mid-nineteenth century. It was in fact Felix Pfanner (1818-1892), a native of Hörbranz (Austria), but of the Bavarian family, to progressively purchase the entire structure after having installed, since 1846, his brewery, the first of the Duchy of Lucca and a of the first in Italy. The historic Pfanner Brewery, a pleasant place of production and delivery located between the garden and the cellars of the palace, closed in 1929. The palace is still owned by the Pfanner family which, since 1995, has undertaken a demanding restoration work. also promoting its enhancement through the opening to the public and the organization of exhibitions and concerts.
Palazzo Pfanner
Address: Via degli Asili, 33, 55100
Phone: 0583 954029
Site:
http://www.palazzopfanner.itLocation inserted by
Culturalword Abco