Palazzo Ippoliti - Postumia wax museum

Palazzo degli Ippoliti, also known as Palazzo Castello, dates from the 16C and was constructed for Count Ippoliti at the peak of splendour of the imperial feud which, after originating in or around 1350, did not end until after Napoleon Bonaparte’s Italian campaign in 1796. The fortunes of the building followed those of the Ippoliti family.

The salons on the piano nobile are embellished with stuccowork and floral decorations by the large 18C arts and crafts school of Mantua. Pictures from the start of the century show the original appearance of the facade at that time, with a central doorway framed by rusticated marble half-columns supporting the balcony of the piano nobile, as well as large multiple railings with stone columns, also subsequently demolished, along with the central block of the mansion. This latter demolition produced two separate buildings, thus divided: the left-hand block (looking at the main facade) was divided into two properties, one privately owned as a residence, and the other of municipal ownership; the right-hand block was a private dwelling.

The portion of the mansion municipally owned was a Wax Museum from 2001 to 2010, while the spaces are currently empty and not used for any institutional activities.