Benzoni Palace – An Example of 18th-Century Residential Architecture in Rijeka’s Old Town

Abstract

This paper focuses on the construction history and renovations of the Benzoni Palace located in Grivica Square in the Old Town of Rijeka. The three-storey building was designed by architect Antonio de Verneda and erected during the second quarter of the 18th century as a family palace of Giovanni Antonio Benzoni, bishop of Senj (1693-1745). The palace was renovated in the late 18th century, at the time when it was owned by the bishop’s nephew, Giulio Benzoni (1732-1798), who was a city councillor. He had the front façade redesigned in the late-baroque classicist style, by adding a monumental stone portal, two balconies, and rich window decoration made in wrought iron. The palace underwent further adaptations during the second half of the 19th century, when it was repurposed to serve as an orphanage, then as army barracks, and eventually as a rental apartment building. The 20th century saw several major interventions undertaken by its tenants, which to some extent degraded the palace’s architecture. Based on the archival documentation, the authors present a proposal for the reconstruction of its original façade and the context of its design in the late 18th-century Rijeka.