Farnese, Palazzo

A Roman palace near the Campo dei Fiori. It was commissioned by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (later Pope Paul III) and designed in the Florentine style by the architect Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, who began work in 1517. After Sangallo's death in 1546 Michelangelo became the chief architect, introducing a number of alterations. At the end of the 16th century, the interior of the palace was decorated with frescoes by Annibale Carracci, notably the Galleria, which was decorated with mythological scenes.

Also involved in the building of the palace was the architect Vignola, who was in charge from the 1560s until his death in 1573, when Giacomo della Porta took over, completing the building in 1589.