Mantegna's House

In his Lives Vasari wrote that Mantegna erected and painted a beautiful house for himself in which he lived for the rest of his life. It is not known where the artist resided during the first years of his stay in Mantua, supposedly he lived in the Aquila district, close to the Ducal Palace. Over the years the land owned by him increased, thus allowing him to access a substantial income. Mantegna was an outstanding artist, but also a talented architect, as is clearly indicated by various documents of the time. He was in charge of the decoration of various palaces in Mantua, many of which no longer stand. The need to design a house for himself, its features an example of the most exquisite Renaissance style, evidently was felt starting in 1476, a date that can be found in an inscription on the marble reinforcement on the corner on the external wall of the House. The Latin inscription reads: “On land given by Prince Ludovico, Andrea Mantegna laid the foundations November 18, 1476…”