The lie of the land
DESCRIBING this 14th-century villa just outside Florence as nothing short of spectacular wouldn’t be a lie – in fact it’s the former family home of one of Italy’s best loved authors who really wasn’t a fan of telling untruths.
Built on the ruins of an original fortress, the house belonged to Carlo Lorenzini, the man who created Pinocchio.
Carlo was a celebrated author, humourist and journalist, but he became most famous for his fairy tale novel The Adventures of Pinocchio.
From humble beginnings, he gained a scholarship before attending the College of Scolopi Fathers in Florence, where he became a manuscript specialist.
During the Italian Wars of Independence in 1848, Carlo served as a volunteer with the Tuscan army before becoming a journalist. When he became disenchanted with politics, his original interest, he moved into children’s literature and, after first translating French fairy tales, he began to write his own, taking the pen name Carlo Collodi.
Carlo’s speciality was using allegories to talk about morality – hence the little wooden puppet Pinocchio, whose nose grows every time he tells a lie.
The National Carlo
Collodi Foundation was established after he died in 1890 and the Park of Pinocchio attracts thousands of visitors each year.
The whole estate, which includes Italian-style gardens with terraces, steps, statues and fountains, is now for sale with Hamptons International.
This includes the main villa, built on the ruins, which is spread over four levels and has several prestigious frescoed rooms, and the Summer House, to the north of the villa, which is the work of architect Diodati. It has a roof terrace, is enclosed by balustrades and has mosaic detailing.
The new owner will also take over a house known as La Fattoria, the farm, a building currently used as a restaurant, the Bagnetti, original period thermal baths with frescoed rooms, and a building used as an education natural trail for welcoming visitors to the stunning glass House of Butterflies.