Keep your eyes ahead for a grand, pale villa with a long, columned loggia and lush, sculpted gardens bursting with statues and potted lemon trees-if you see a fountain spritzing in the sun, you’ve found the illustrious Pfanner Palace.
Ah! Welcome to the secret heart of Lucca, where the ghosts of nobles mingle with the scent of citrus and ancient magnolias-Palazzo Pfanner, a place so fabulous that even the local pigeons walk with extra swagger! Picture the year 1660: the Moriconi family, wealthy merchant nobles with a taste for drama and big dreams, decide to build themselves a home that would leave the neighbors green with envy. Only, there was a plot twist-financial disaster struck, and in 1680 the Moriconis had to sell to the Contronis, another silk merchant family climbing their way up the social ladder. If you’re thinking Lucca’s history is some kind of Renaissance soap opera, you’re not wrong!
The Controni family invested in this palace like a modern influencer shops for handbags-no expense spared! By 1686, they wanted a staircase so magnificent it could make an emperor swoon, so they (probably) hired Domenico Martinelli, a Lucca-born prodigy who was dazzling courts from Vienna to Prague. Future guests swooned over that staircase, and rumor has it that if you walk up those steps today you might just hear the faint of visiting royalty past.
Speaking of royals, picture this: it’s 1692, and the Contronis are hosting none other than Prince Frederick of Denmark, big on the Grand Tour circuit. The palace was buzzing! But the prince wasn’t just interested in the architecture. He became quite... shall we say, enchanted, by the local beauty Maria Maddalena Trenta. At Palazzo Pfanner, romantic scandals aren’t just in the guidebook-they’re practically built into the walls.
Fast forward to the 1800s and in waltzes Felix Pfanner, an Austrian with Bavarian roots, a love of beer, and an entrepreneurial spirit that would make modern start-up founders weep. In 1846, he opened a brewery right here in the palace-can you imagine the aroma of hops floating through these noble rooms? Soon, the garden became the coolest spot in town for Lucchesi and travelers from every corner of Europe. The brewery was the first in Lucca, one of the first in all of Italy-and believe me, it was the pride of the city. Sadly, after nearly a century of cheers and toasts, the clinking of beer glasses went quiet in 1929 when the brewery closed its doors. But some swear if you stand still, you can almost catch a whiff of that malty perfume on the breeze.
Now, as you gaze at this façade, picture the interiors: a grand central hall, frescoed in the 1720s by Pietro Paolo Scorsini, dazzling you from the moment you step inside. Down the side corridors await sala after sala of antique furniture and precious ornaments-along with a 14th-century statue of Saint Michael the Archangel, who’s been keeping a watchful eye on family fortunes for centuries. The monumental staircase leads to more frescoes, painted by Bartolomeo De Santi and Lorenzo Castellotti-enough art to give you a crick in your neck from looking up.
Ah, but the treasures don’t stop there! The family’s most illustrious son, Dr. Pietro Pfanner, kept his collection of surgical instruments and ancient medical books here. He must have been a curious sight striding through these halls: mayor of Lucca from 1920 to 1922, surgeon, philanthropist... the works. You wouldn’t want him to operate after sampling too much Pfanner beer, though!
Step out into the gardens, and you’ll see they are pure Baroque fantasy-rumored to be designed by Filippo Juvarra himself and among the best-preserved Italian gardens from the period. As you pass the entrance gate, four terracotta pots of cycas mark your way. Notice how the garden divides into elegant rectangles through precise straight pathways. In the center lies an octagonal fountain, guarded by four statues of mythological gods: Vulcan blazing with fire, Mercury ready to flutter off on the breeze, Dionysus with a vine in hand, and Ocean, forever rippling with watery calm. There are statues for the four seasons too-and perhaps, if you listen carefully, you’ll catch a hint of ancient laughter drifting between the box hedges and laurels.
Everything here is lush, grand, and just a bit theatrical. Tall bamboo groves, fruit trees, roses and lemon plants line your walk, making each breath a little sweeter. At the far end sits the limonaia, crowned with lions and the Controni family basilisk, while the statues of Hercules and Cybele keep silent guard by the wooden gate.
It’s no wonder that filmmakers come running-this palace starred in “Il Marchese del Grillo,” with Alberto Sordi, and even played host to Nicole Kidman in “Portrait of a Lady.” If you get hungry after all this history, today you’ll find the Michelin-starred restaurant L’Imbuto in the old stables-proof that the good things in Lucca never really go out of style. And yes, for the truly lucky, you can even spend the night here. Can you imagine the dreams you’d have, surrounded by so much splendor and history?
So, take a deep breath, let your eyes linger on garden statues and noble columns, and know you’re standing where princes, doctors, lovers, and the finest brewers of Lucca have all left their mark. If only the lemon trees could talk-they’d have the best gossip in town!
