Palazzina di Caccia di Stupinigi

The Palazzina di Caccia di Stupinigi is one of the most exuberant Baroque buildings in Piedmont, a royal hunting lodge designed by Filippo Juvarra from 1729 for King Vittorio Amedeo II and part of the UNESCO-listed circuit of Savoy residences. Its unusual saltire ground plan radiates from a great oval central salon crowned by a dome, on top of which stands a bronze stag, the emblem of the hunt and the building's most famous silhouette. Inside, the salone centrale dazzles with a sweeping fresco of the hunt of Diana, gilded mirrors and rococo decoration, and the surrounding apartments, which once hosted lavish court festivities and even Napoleon, now form a museum of furnishings and decorative arts displaying period furniture, tapestries, lacquer and carriages drawn from the Savoy collections. Outside, formal gardens and an avenue lead into the wider park of Stupinigi, once a royal hunting reserve and now a protected green area popular for walks and cycling. A visit to the interior takes around an hour and a half to two hours, and pairing it with a stroll in the grounds makes a relaxed half day. The lodge is busiest on weekends and during the temporary exhibitions and concerts it regularly hosts; weekday mornings are quieter and the soft light then suits photography of the long facade and the stag-topped dome. Located in Nichelino on the south-western edge of Turin, Stupinigi is reached in about thirty to forty minutes by GTT bus from the city centre or easily by car. As a showcase of Savoy court leisure, it complements the grander palaces of the dynasty with a more intimate, theatrical character.